Salvador DalĂ’s The Persistence of Memory
Marelisa Fabrega wrote about lateral thinking and gave us some interesting logic puzzles to play with. In the spirit of promoting lateral thinking, I’ve come up with a puzzle of my own. Be the first to solve it, and win a prize.
A guy wakes up early in the morning, happy because it’s his birthday. Because he’s very precise about time, he wants to jump up and shout “Woo hoo!” at the exact time of his birth.
He looks at the clock and sees that it’s not time yet, so he waits and twiddles his thumbs. But after a while, he suddenly realizes that it will never be the right time. Why?
If you think you know the answer, leave a comment and tell us. If you’re the first one to get it, I’ll leave a comment on your blog and give you a stumble. Hey, I didn’t say it was a big prize!
Hey Hunter,
Interesting puzzle.
I’m going to have a guess that because it’s already his birthday (He “woke up early in the morning, happy because it’s his birthday”), then his exact birth second/minute has already passed (it’s already his birthday).
Am I right?
Jamie
Jamie Harrop´s last blog post..If Life Was a River…
@ Jamie, nope, he woke up on his birthday, but before his exact birth second/minute. BTW, people can make multiple guesses.
Guess #1 – Being picky about the wording – the exact time of his birth was when he was born. It will never be that time again.
Has the clock stopped?
Andrew´s last blog post..Utilitarian moral choices
If this has got anything to do with travelling through space at the speed of light I will be upset.
Andrew´s last blog post..Utilitarian moral choices
@ Andrew, feel free to be picky about the wording, as I’m using you guys to help figure out the best wording.
Regarding guess #1, good guess, but what I mean is same month/day/hour/minute, different year. Like if he was born at 5:36 PM on 12/30/1960, then he’s waiting for 5:36 PM today.
Regarding guess #2, nope, the clock is functioning just fine.
@ Andrew, no, he’s not travelling through space, nor travelling at the speed of light. The solution is more down to earth.
Is it because he woke up on an airplane crossing time zones more rapidly than the real time he experiences on the plane, thereby “skipping” the right time?
Annie Binns´s last blog post..The Internet Marketer’s Christmas
Dang. I really thought I had it then.
I’m not too good at these puzzles. They make my brain turn to mash. I’ll keep thinking though.
Jamie
Jamie Harrop´s last blog post..If Life Was a River…
@ Annie, that’s what I would have guessed. But no, he stays in one place and does not cross time zones.
@ Jamie, but think of the new neural connections you’re creating in your brain!
OK. Trying to narrow it down a little.
Am I right in dismissing everything relating to physics?
Am I also right in dismissing a Xeno’s paradox style answer?
Andrew´s last blog post..Utilitarian moral choices
@ Andrew, yes, you can dismiss physics and philosophy. It’s much simpler than that.
He’s on death row and scheduled for execution prior to the time he is waiting for?
Cause that’s kind of what it feels like for me to try to guess this damn thing.
Annie Binns´s last blog post..The Internet Marketer’s Christmas
@ Annie, er, no, he’s not on death row. He’s a good guy.
If this goes on too long I’ll start dropping hints, but it’s really fun to see the guesses.
I think I will need to admit defeat.
My mind is simply recycling things like the time it takes light to travel between him and the clock, or that when the clock shows it is the right time it will already be too late, or things to do with the lack of precision within our calendar system and the slowing of orbits. etc. In my darker moments I also wondered if, in fact, he had no legs, or there was some protracted element to the birth itself.
I am going to kick myself when you finally reveal it.
Andrew´s last blog post..Utilitarian moral choices
Could it be that the addition of “leap seconds” through the intervening years means the time is not accurate?
@ Andrew, you’re thinking way too hard, but I can tell you’re the kind of guy who enjoys that!
@ Welmoed, good guess, but for our purposes, we can ignore the effects of leap seconds.
Is he on a planet / satelite with a shorter day?
Andrew´s last blog post..Rewrite and rewrite and rewrite and rewrite and rewrite
In an effort to be a common-sense monkey as opposed to a Science and physics expert, I’m going to take another guess by saying “Is it really his birthday, or did he get the date wrong?”
Jamie
Jamie Harrop´s last blog post..Blogging Questions Answered – Part 1
Oh, I have no idea. I didn’t major in Math, you know.
Maybe because his exact birthday happens only once — when he was born?
@ Jamie, nope, he’s a bit more on top of things than that! It’s really his birthday.
@ Andrew, OK, here you get your first hint. He’s on earth, but it couldn’t happen in all places on earth. The phenomenon behind this problem occurs in Europe, North Asia, most of Canada, half of Australia, part of South America, and all of the United States except Arizona.
@ Akemi, I thought you learned U.S. college math when you were in middle school! Your guess is the same as Andrew’s first guess, and that’s not it. BTW, you’re at a disadvantage for this problem because it could not occur in Japan.
OK, Did he wake up between midnight and 1am and at 1am the clocks changed?
Andrew´s last blog post..Rewrite and rewrite and rewrite and rewrite and rewrite
Booo. As soon as I heard “Arizona”, I knew it had to do with daylight savings.
Looks like Andrew beat me to it.
Jamie
Jamie Harrop´s last blog post..Blogging Questions Answered – Part 1
Alright, I’ll consider both Andrew and Jamie to be the winners. Yes, it’s because of Daylight Saving Time. His birth time is 2:30 AM, but it’s the day you set your clock forward an hour. At 2:00 AM, the time instantly jumps ahead to 3:00 AM. 2:30 AM just doesn’t exist. Likewise, 1:30 AM would occur twice on the day you set your clock back an hour.
Twice a year, I wonder how Doc Brown’s DeLorean would handle this. What if you input a time that doesn’t exist, or that exists twice?
Anyway, thanks to all who tried, and great job by Andrew and Jamie. If you two have a specific post you’d like me to look at, you can leave a link, or I’ll just take a look at what you’ve written recently.
Just got here and it looks like it’s been solved. Good lateral thinking puzzle Hunter, and kudos to Jamie and Andrew for being so insistent
Thank you for the link.
Hi Hunter – I would have never thought of that. I’m happy to hear someone did as now I can stop racking my brain. Congrats to Andrew and Jamie.
Barbara Swafford´s last blog post..It’s A Time For Celebration
Arizona was a dead give-away! (I hail from Indiana where they just recently joined the rest of the US on observing Daylight Savings Time.)
Nice example of lateral thinking!
Kathy @ Virtual Impax´s last blog post..Another “stupid” business idea that was anything but stupid
That was fun. I definitely think too hard.
I’m grateful to any comments on anything I do, so if you have something to contribute by all means take your pick.
Thanks for interesting post.
Andrew´s last blog post..Television Induced Vertigo
Hi Hunter. That was fun! You got another? Now that I’ve dusted the cobwebs away from this one, I’m ready to win the next one… shhh.
There is a small complexity you didn’t mention – since DST occurs not on a specific calendar date, but rather on a “first Sunday …” type of thing, this event wouldn’t occur every birthday; and not at all since 2007 when DST moved from 1st Sunday in April to 2nd Sunday in March.
I agree with Davina – give us another one! You don’t even have to promise a stumble.
Annie Binns´s last blog post..The Internet Marketer’s Christmas
Nice, I loved this. I didn’t get it sadly. I figured it had to do with the earth spinning slightly off it’s axis each year therefore affecting the passage of time over years etc. etc. Way OFF!
I’d love to see another, btw anyone try that game Mind Trap. I used to play it in the 90’s. Full of problems just like this. I’ll try to remember one.
Ryan
Ryan M Hall´s last blog post..I’m a Failure for Christmas!
Damn, I am too late to play, so I will just say this;
Why Dali? He is one of my favorite painters… Is it just for the clocks?
Jim Gaudet´s last blog post..This is Way too Personal…
@ Marelisa, thanks for starting this! And notice the winners are the ones who kept trying.
@ Barbara, yes, please stop racking your brain. Puzzles should be a gentle stretch, not pain.
@ Kathy, I didn’t know that about Indiana. Nor did I realize Arizona was famous for that. Oh well, now I do!
@ Andrew, alright, I’ll see what you’ve written, and see what I might be able to do.
@ Davina, I don’t have one right now, but I’m sure I’ll do others at some point.
@ Annie, I agree it wouldn’t happen to the same person every year; I just meant that it happened to this person once. But I don’t understand why it wouldn’t happen after 2007.
@ Ryan, wow, you sound like Andrew with the complex answers! Definitely let us know if you remember any Mind Trap problems.
@ Jim, I chose this painting for the clocks, the surrealism, and just because I like it. It seemed to fit well.
Hi Hunter
Pity I got here late, but entertaining none the less.
I would have gone along a number of the routes: time zones and, in particular, philosophical debate…
Have a great New Year,
Juliet
LifeMadeGreat | Juliet´s last blog post..Why Is It Awkward To Haggle Over Prices?
Here’s The only one I can remember, and I don’t love this one as I have seen much better puzzles. Sadly, though, I sent it to the salvation army because I couldn’t find anyone to play with me.
Never thought about the internet. LOL.
-A man works on 34th floor of an office building. Every day when he goes to work, -he rides the elevator to the 22nd floor, then takes the stairs the rest of the way.
-Why does he take the elevator only to the 22nd floor.
I don’t think the actual numbers matter, but that’s the best I can remember, hopefully I don’t mess it up and become socially ostracized for my inability to remember odd puzzles.
We’ll see.
Ryan M Hall´s last blog post..I’m a Failure for Christmas!
Is it that he is too short to reach the rest of the buttons?
Andrew´s last blog post..What’s the future for radio?
Yeah. Actually. Wow you got that quick. The first time I read that I thought he just wanted to lose weight, but not bad enough to walk 34 floors. LOL. I was way off!
Way to go.
Ryan
Ryan M Hall´s last blog post..I’m a Failure for Christmas!
Hunter,
I was going to guess that it didn’t involve the clock at all, but rather there was something that would prevent him either from jumping and/or yelling. Oh well, different box.
Anyway, I just found your site via Randy’s book and I’m enjoying being here. Happy 09!
jeff´s last blog post..Gartner Says, “2008 Should Be The Last Christmas for Retail CDs” @ MBV
@ Juliet, I guess there are multiple directions you can go in, which is why it’s helpful to be able to ask questions instead of just making a guess and being right or wrong.
@ Ryan, in the version I heard, he usually took the elevator halfway up, except when it was raining. The answer is that he needed an umbrella to reach the top buttons.
@ Jeff, it’s always nice to get a “Randy referral.” You thought of yet more ways to answer the problem, so I guess there were more possibilities than I thought. Happy New Year to everyone!
YES, the Umbrella. Consider me officially socially ostracized for my inability to remember a puzzle I randomly read one day.
Thanks for reminding me about that part!
Ryan
Ryan M Hall´s last blog post..I’m a Failure for Christmas!
Well, the April birthday-boy could not have this “missed” birthday experience after 2007 because DST occurs in March from that year forward. Sure, we could have a March birthday-boy, but at only 1 year old so far, he probably isn’t planning to jump and shout “woo hoo” yet.
Ryan, cool puzzle, it was good even without the umbrella part, although that would have made it much more difficult and therefore evil. I like the simplified version.
Annie Binns´s last blog post..The Internet Marketer’s Christmas
@ Ryan, you’re officially un-ostracized now! Actually, Annie is making me wonder whether it’s easier/more entertaining with or without the umbrella.
@ Annie, sorry, I’m still not getting it. Why can March birthday boy only be 1 year old? Why can’t he be 40? He wouldn’t have missed any birthdays because of DST prior to 2007, but that doesn’t mean he hadn’t been born yet.
Because….the exact moment he was born was just that…when he was born. It can never happen again, every moment is a new one.
@ Ashley, we were talking about just hour/minute, not the exact point in history when he was born. See the comments above.
LMAO – you are right, of course. I pigeon-holed our boy to April, having had a lifetime of this experience every few years; when in fact he could be a March boy and just had his first disturbing experience of no woo-hoo.
Annie Binns´s last blog post..The Internet Marketer’s Christmas
@ Annie, maybe the experience of no woo-hoo is a good thing, because he doesn’t age that year!