About Bernard Hawkes Expertise Please read my Policy Statement. Puzzles and brainteasers. Ask and I will help! That said, I`m best at pure logic puzzles. E.g. You have twelve apparently identical coins of which one is counterfeit, being either slightly heavy or light. Determine the counterfeit coin, and whether it is heavy or light, in no more than three weighings using a balance scale. Rebuses and riddles I`m less good at, but will generally get the answer given time. Requests for oddball facts (e.g. What was the second most common girl`s name in 1900? [genuine example - answer: Ruth]) I regard as outside my remit. However, you are welcome to ask, but I may not be able to help you.
Experience Member of Mensa. Solution to "gry" riddle.
Question QUESTION: When I was in 5th grade I had a substitute teacher give me a puzzle to try to solve. I am 24 years old now and STILL have not figured it out. I need help. It is killing me! I have filled up notebooks upon notebooks of this puzzle and can not get it. It looks like this
Ok, now those are supposed to be solid lines but it is the best I can do on the computer. The object of the puzzle is to draw one continuous line through each section of the picture. Each division created by each line on the puzzle equals a different section so look at it like individual squares and rectangles inside the puzzle. You have to draw a continuous line through each side of every square and rectangle. The catch is, you can only cross each line once. You can start from anywhere inside or outside the puzzle but it must be only one line passing through each section.
I hope I explained it well enough and please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Chris
ANSWER: Hi Chris
As presented to me I can state with absolute certainty that it is impossible to draw your continuous line.
The wording of the puzzle (cunningly) leads you to draw the puzzle the way you have but, if you read it carefully, you will find that there is NO prohibition against drawing the top divider to the right (or left) of BOTH bottom dividers. The puzzle is now easily soluble.
Best wishes,
Bernard.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: I don't really understand what you mean by the wording of the puzzle? When I was first presented with the puzzle, I was shown it drawn this way. I might not just be understanding what you are saying about the wording of the puzzle though.
Answer Hi Chris
If you were presented with a piece of paper with a pre-drawn
figure similar to the one you presented to me then you should hunt down that teacher and sue him/her for mental cruelty! Let me reiterate, IT DOES NOT HAVE A SOLUTION. There is a formal mathematical proof of this but the simplest way to think about it is to count the sections of each area. If more than two areas have an odd number of sections then the puzzle is impossible.
The puzzle is normally worded something like this:-
Draw a rectangle. Divide it horizontally into two. Divide the top section vertically into two and the bottom section vertically into three. Etc.
Most people instinctively draw it the way you've presented it. It is only soluble if you draw it the way I suggest.
