Puzzle 197
Customer services at BrainBashers headquarters received the following letter recently.
Luckily, our top puzzle solvers were able to determine the meaning and help Sam South.
Can you work out what the problem was?
D-a- K-v-n,
- ---ld l-k- -- c-m-la-n ab--- -h- --- --- -f m- ----------.
-h-s- l-----s d- n-- a---a- -- b- ---k-ng c----c-l-.
As --- can s--, -h-- a-- m-ss-ng f--m -h-s d-c-m-n-.
- ---ld b- v--- g-a--f-l -f --- c--ld c----c- -h-s ---bl-m -mm-d-a--l-.
K-nd --ga-ds.
Sam S---h.
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
Which letters are missing?
Answer
The letter was written on a typewriter that has a problem with the top row of letters printing correctly. The letter should have read:
Dear Kevin,
I would like to complain about the top row of my typewriter.
These letters do not appear to be working correctly.
As you can see, they are missing from this document.
I would be very grateful if you could correct this problem immediately.
Kind regards.
Sam South.
Puzzle 198
What number replaces the question mark?
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
In the first box, look at 7 & 3, and 4 & 1, to see how we can use them to make 12.
Answer
4.
Reasoning
For each row, the left minus the right gives a number.
The numbers for the rows are then multiplied together.
In the first box:
7 − 3 = 4
4 − 1 = 3
so 4 x 3 = 12
In the second box:
9 − 2 = 7
8 − 3 = 5
so 7 x 5 = 35
In the last box:
6 − 2 = 4
8 − 7 = 1
so 4 x 1 = 4.
Puzzle 199
At the annual BrainBashers puzzle discussion conference, 20 people attended.
At the start of the conference, each person shook hands with every other person, how many handshakes took place in total?
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Hint
How many hands did the first person shake?
Answer
190.
The first person shook hands with 19 others, the second had already shook hands with the first and therefore shook 18 hands, etc:
19 + 18 + 17 + 16 + 15 + 14 + 13 + 12 + 11 + 10 + 9 + 8 + 7 + 6 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 190
Puzzle 200
Which is larger:
square feet in half a square mile
cubic yards in a cubic furlong
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
There are 3 feet in a yard, 1760 yards in a mile, and 8 furlongs in a mile.
Answer
Square feet in half a square mile.
Reasoning
There are 3 feet in a yard, 1760 yards in a mile, and 8 furlongs in a mile.
A mile is 1760 x 3 = 5280 feet in a mile.
A square mile is 5280 x 5280 = 27878400 square feet.
Therefore, half a square mile = 13,939,200 square feet.
A furlong is 1760 ÷ 8 = 220 yards.
Therefore, a cubic furlong is 220 x 220 x 220 = 10,648,000 cubic yards.
