I'll Pass

 
 Camille checking in.

Challenge: A call to engage in a contest, fight, or competition.

No thanks.

I have friends who actually challenge themselves. What? It's not enough to stay alive and be reasonably productive, you have to run faster than a greyhound? Be the first person to walk across a continent or climb a rock formation?

      =  

When faced with a challenge, I'd rather switch than fight. If you want to beat me, be my guest.

The only exceptions are for very low-stakes challenges, like doing the toughest puzzle in the book, where the answer is readily available and no one has to know how poorly I did.

Along those lines, I'm working on a puzzle/brainteaser page in honor of my latest protagonist, Professor Sophie Knowles, who will make her appearance on July 5 in The Square Root of Murder by Ada Madison. (It's a huge challenge to keep my names straight; it's a good thing I dropped Sister Anthony).

Sophie is a college math teacher, puzzler, and, of course, sleuth.

Here's a riddle she likes. See if you're up to the challenge!

A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose among three rooms.

The first room is full of goons with loaded guns.  The second is full of wild animals that haven't eaten in 6 months. The third is about to explode from raging fires.

Which room is safest for him?

Post your answers!

If you like puzzles, check out my other blog, The Real Me, tomorrow, Thursday 4/21. http://www.minichino.com/wordpress.

 

Comments

[Priscilla]

Howl! Why did you do this to me, Camille!? (Interpreted: what a great and intriguing post!)OK. I'll be the first and humiliate myself thoroughly here. I'd choose the room with the goons. One has a hope of (1)they all miss; (2) you can outwit them so they either (a)end up shooting each other or (b) go on your side and shoot whomever opens the door after the gunfire...

[Camille Minichino]

Oh, how I'd love to respond, Priscilla, but I'm going to wait until the end of the day to comment!

[Staci]

Camille, I'm going to vote for Door Number 2, the room with the wild animals. If they haven't eaten in six months, they should all be dead by now!

[Susan C Shea]

Wait a minute - he's condemned to die. Are you asking which is the easiest death? Or does he get to live if he outwits the proposed death behind one door? (You see the kind of mind I bring to these challenges - endlessly twisting, word-smithing, noodling around the edges thinking). I'd be the slowest button-pusher on a quiz show as I ruminated on the various ways to interpret the question of who is buried in Grant's Tomb!

[Camille Minichino]

You're taking all the fun out, Susan!

kidding.

The endless analysis of the semantics is what makes these such fun.

Traditionally, this riddle asks, "can he get out alive?"

The "answer" will be revealed this evening!

[Ann]

Well, as pointed out, if he's condemned to death, goodness, get it over with quickly! But animals w/out food for 6 months = dead animals. Goons with guns: maybe they're his good buddies, so won't shoot? Looking forward to the "real" answer!

[Camille Minichino]

Almost midnight EST . . .

Traditionally, the answer to this riddle is as Staci and Ann have noted: the animals would be dead, so the prisoner would be safe in that room.

BUT as we see from Susan, there are many ways to look at the formulation -- what does "condemned" mean? That even though he may be safe for a while, he will eventually be killed? No riddle is worded in a way that can't be wiggled around and that's why you'll find discussion groups where people talk endlessly about them. And not for nothing are they called brainTEASERS.

I really like Priscilla's ideas also -- in fact, if I were the prisoner, I'd be too afraid to go into that animal room under any conditions, so I'd probably take my chances with the goons, maybe bring them some cannoli.

Thanks for "playing."

There's a simple cryptoquote on my Thursday blog, up now, if you're geared up for more puzzling. http://www.minichino.com/wordpress

[Mysti]

Shoot, I thought he'd pick the room with goons, cuz he's a criminal, so they are probably on his side...funny how I changed "haven't eaten" into "haven't eaten well" to make the sentence make sense :)

Now my brain is awake, thanks!!!!!