Comments on: Brainteasers' Aftermaths

Brainteasers' Aftermaths

MiguelCardoso — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 02:34:08 -0800

So What Happened After The Wise Man Discovered He Was Wearing The Red Hat? Don Steinberg's hilarious brainteaser aftermaths inevitably makes one wonder what happens after fairy-tale endings or the punchlines in jokes.

By: twine42

twine42 — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 03:00:43 -0800

vowing never again to book travel through the Internet Okay... I laugh at strange things...

By: Johnny Assay

Johnny Assay — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 05:49:59 -0800

Also: After the Punchline.

By: chandy72

chandy72 — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:00:36 -0800

"...I bear no small shame for the unholy means by which I have sustained myself for more than two centuries. You see, I am not only a U.S. citizen . . . I am also a vampire." This just makes so much sense to me this morning. But what happened to the guy in the knock-knock joke that didn't say "banana" again?

By: ralawrence

ralawrence — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:02:07 -0800

I must be suffering a sense of humour failure today as I didn't laugh once at either of the links :o(

By: LoopSouth

LoopSouth — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:29:04 -0800

The knight/knave one didn't make sense... The brother could have been lying either way...

By: luser

luser — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:36:57 -0800

Pretty disappointing, tired, formulaic stuff from the New Yorker. Veronica Geng is looking down in horror.

By: soyjoy

soyjoy — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:43:53 -0800

Pretty disappointing, tired, formulaic stuff from luser. Don Steinberg rocks.

By: jozxyqk

jozxyqk — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:54:46 -0800

LoopSouth: Is this explanation better? The question is: "Are you and your sister the same type?" If he's a knight, and she's a knight, he will say "yes" (the truth). If he's a knave, and she's a knight, he will also say "yes" (a lie). And the opposite for the other situation.

By: PinkStainlessTail

PinkStainlessTail — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 06:55:28 -0800

The knight/knave one didn't make sense... Oh lord, just let that one go, or you'll have the Mensa Junior Mounted Storm Force down on us. The real problem with the Knight/Knave puzzler is that the only "acceptable" answer is the tricksy "no matter what he answers, my question shall expose him" one. Just ask the guy if he's a bird or a frog or a hat or something. Yes=Knave, No=Knight. This technique stolen from Herzog's Enigma of Kaspar Hauser.

By: skryche

skryche — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 07:07:11 -0800

I'm sure I've seen something similar to this (and even more similar to the brunching link) on McSweeney's wherein jokes were told beyond the punchline. I searched for it but couldn't find it. But I did find this.

By: staggernation

staggernation — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 07:20:29 -0800

skryche: maybe this?

By: jozxyqk

jozxyqk — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 07:50:23 -0800

PinkStainlessTail - The idea behind those puzzles is that it doesn't matter whether the person you're asking is lying or not. You're limited to one question, and you need to get a particular piece of information out of that question. If you waste your one question on "Are you a frog?" then you're no closer to your answer. If you get *two* questions, that's too easy. "Are you a frog?" (Yes -> He's lying). "Is she a knight?" (No -> Yes).. I've heard it most commonly with two doors. "Would the other guard say that your door is the right one?" is the trick question for that one.

By: PinkStainlessTail

PinkStainlessTail — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 08:00:34 -0800

D'oh! This would be why my application for the Mensa Junior Mounted Storm Force was turned down. Bastards.

By: orange swan

orange swan — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 08:06:19 -0800

The Mensa Junior Mounted Storm Force ought to go after the one who wrote the ending to the "mother's the doctor" one. It said in the beginning that the father died and he comes walking into the O.R. Tsk. Tsk.

By: Frasermoo

Frasermoo — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 08:33:20 -0800

This is a job for Super Nintendo Chalmers.

By: Holden

Holden — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 09:13:15 -0800

I wondered why the New Yorker ran that Shouts & Murmurs piece: Because some people really do find it funny! Miguel, we don't share a sense of humor. I still would like to meet you, though, if I ever make it to Portugal. I was thinking about you this week as I read Ryszard Kapuscinski's fine book, "Another Day of Life," about the final days before Angola achieved independence from Portugal. Typical amazing Kapuscinski stuff -- he's the best reporter alive.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 09:29:51 -0800

Why would you be limited to only one question? Is your tongue gangrenous or maybe leprous and about to drop out of your mouth of its own accord? If so, you'd probably best forget whatever you were worrying about before, stick out yer festering tongue, and hope that its obvious ill health is taken as a sign to get you some medical treatment muy pronto, if only so that the knave, if he's a knave, doesn't have to look at your disgusting self any more or further risk infection himself. If the dude just refuses to answer more than one question, try threatening his life or gonads. He'll answer a truck full of questions after you smash a kneecap.

By: soyjoy

soyjoy — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 10:04:12 -0800

It said in the beginning that the father died and he comes walking into the O.R. Tsk. Tsk. orange swan, you are being sarcastic, right? I mean, that's what makes it so funny - it doesn't just extend the premise of the original but stretches it and then breaks it. Unfortunately, I think, that one is the funniest one, so it should have been last.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 10:27:19 -0800

OS: To use the lawyerly reasoning these brain-teasers often do, it does not specify that the father is dead when the son is at the hospital, only that he had been killed. He could easily enough have been killed, which only means rendered legally dead, and then revived. Or [miraclemax] he could only be MOSTLY dead! [/miraclemax]

By: jcruelty

jcruelty — Fri, 31 Jan 2003 15:49:44 -0800

funny. reminded me of mcsweeneys online, although mcsweeneys online isn't that funny anymore.