Okay, here is one to add to your list.
Three men, lined up one behind the other are facing a blank wall. The third man can see the first two, the second man can see the first man, the first man can see no one. A fourth man puts a hat on each of their heads. They are told that there were two red hats and three white hats in the group of hats selected from then asked, "What color is the hat you are wearing?" The third man looked ahead at the two in front of him and said, "I don't know." The second man, after hearing the third man's response said, "I don't know." The first man, after hearing the response of the other two said, " I am wearing a __________ hat. What color was he wearing and how did he know?
Liz
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CLASSIC LATERAL THINKING EXERCISES
Try these to loosen up the old brain cells.
1. There is a man who lives on the top floor of a very tall building. Everyday
he gets the elevator down to the ground floor to leave the
building to go to work. Upon returning from work though, he can only travel
half way up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way unless it's
raining! Why?
This is probably the best known and most celebrated of all lateral thinking
puzzles. It is a true classic. Although there are many possible solutions
which fit the initial conditions, only the canonical answer is truly
satisfying.
2. A man and his son are in a car accident. The father dies on the scene, but
the child is rushed to the hospital. When he arrives the surgeon says, "I
can't operate on this boy, he is my son!" How can this be?
3. A man is wearing black. Black shoes, socks, trousers, jumper, gloves and
balaclava. He is walking down a black street with all the street lamps off. A
black car is coming towards him with its light off but somehow manages to stop
in time. How did the driver see the man?
4. One day Kerry celebrated her birthday. Two days later her older twin
brother, Terry, celebrated his birthday. How?
5. Why is it better to have round manhole covers than square ones?
This is logical rather than lateral, but it is a good puzzle that can be
solved by lateral thinking techniques. It is supposedly used by a very
well-known software company as an interview question for prospective
employees.
6. A man went to a party and drank some of the punch. He then left early.
Everyone else at the party who drank the punch subsequently died of poisoning.
Why did the man not die?
7. A man died and went to Heaven. There were thousands of other people there.
They were all naked and all looked as they did at the age of 21. He looked
around to see if there was anyone he recognized. He saw a couple and he knew
immediately that they were Adam and Eve. How did he know?
8. A woman had two sons who were born on the same hour of the same day of the
same year. But they were not twins. How could this be so?
9. A man walks into a bar and asks the barman for a glass of water. The barman
pulls out a gun and points it at the man. The man says 'Thank you' and walks
out.
This puzzle claims to be the best of the genre. It is simple in its
statement, absolutely baffling and yet with a completely satisfying
solution. Most people struggle very hard to solve this one yet they like
the answer when they hear it or have the satisfaction of figuring it out.
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