ADSR

[Camy]

Note to Trab and Camy: I don't get the puzzle book thing either.

Thank heavens for that. We are now three - quorum for something. Hmm, I wonder what?

[Trab]

"We are now three - quorum for something."

Do you have any idea how long it took me to figure out about 'quorum'? I'd be at a meeting, and someone would say, "Do we have a quorum?" and all would start looking around. For the longest time I thought it was similar to being at a play and someone calling out, "Is there a doctor in the house?"

[Bruin Fisher]

Oh bugger.

In my opinion, this is the apposite logical and reasoned response to most events in life.

Hugs

Bruin

[DesDownunder]

In my opinion, this is the apposite logical and reasoned response to most events in life.

Hugs

Bruin

I would add "me" after the phrase. It gives one hope.

[Madrigal]

You guys didn't even give me a chance to solve! I demand more! :P

*enables email notification*

Maddy (:

[Bruin Fisher]

By appointment to His Madrigalness:

Excluding esoteric technical terms, there are only four words in the English Language that end with 'dous'.

Can you name all four?

Bruin

[Trab]

Oh, Bruin. That question just screams that any 'yes' or 'no' is equally correct.

[Bruin Fisher]

Oh, Bruin. That question just screams that any 'yes' or 'no' is equally correct.

Silly me. I've re-worded it. It's no good just confirming you can name all four, you've got to actually do it.

Bruin

[Bruin Fisher]

This is a tough one but it can be done. If you don't like it, blame Einstein! I've filched it from here:

Einstein's puzzle on H2G2 and you can check the answer there if you like.

Albert Einstein wrote this riddle in the early 20th century and claimed that 98% of the population would not be able to solve it. Can you? It takes a bit of working out, but I assure you it is possible. You might find it helps to write down your ideas as you go along.

The Fiendish Question

In a street there are five houses painted five different colours. In each house lives a person of a different nationality. The five people each drink a different beverage, smoke a different brand of cigarette and keep a different pet.

1) The Brit lives in the red house

2) The Swede has a dog

3) The Dane drinks tea

4) The green house is on the left of the white house

5) The owner of the green house drinks coffee

6) The person who smokes Pall Mall has birds

7) The owner of the yellow house smokes Dunhill's

8) The man living in the centre house drinks milk

9) The Norwegian lives in the first house

10) The man who smokes blends lives next to the one who has cats

11) The man who has horses lives next to the man who smokes Dunhill's

12) The man who smokes Blue Master drinks beer

13) The German smokes Prince

14) The Norwegian lives next to the blue house

15) The man who smokes Blends has a neighbour who drinks water.

Who keeps the fish?

Bruin with a maniacal laugh

[Madrigal]

By appointment to His Madrigalness:

Excluding esoteric technical terms, there are only four words in the English Language that end with 'dous'.

Can you name all four?

Bruin

Your question is: can you name all four?

You did not specify if you wanted the words that end in 'dous', so I'm assuming that the 4 words you are looking for are these:

Excluding esoteric technical terms.

I have heard a similar riddle: There are only three words in The English Language that end in '-gry'. One is angry and the other one is hungry. Can you name the third word?

It's quite easy :D.

Maddy (::

[Madrigal]

This is a tough one but it can be done. If you don't like it, blame Einstein! I've filched it from here:

Einstein's puzzle on H2G2 and you can check the answer there if you like.

Albert Einstein wrote this riddle in the early 20th century and claimed that 98% of the population would not be able to solve it. Can you? It takes a bit of working out, but I assure you it is possible. You might find it helps to write down your ideas as you go along.

The Fiendish Question

In a street there are five houses painted five different colours. In each house lives a person of a different nationality. The five people each drink a different beverage, smoke a different brand of cigarette and keep a different pet.

1) The Brit lives in the red house

2) The Swede has a dog

3) The Dane drinks tea

4) The green house is on the left of the white house

5) The owner of the green house drinks coffee

6) The person who smokes Pall Mall has birds

7) The owner of the yellow house smokes Dunhill's

8) The man living in the centre house drinks milk

9) The Norwegian lives in the first house

10) The man who smokes blends lives next to the one who has cats

11) The man who has horses lives next to the man who smokes Dunhill's

12) The man who smokes Blue Master drinks beer

13) The German smokes Prince

14) The Norwegian lives next to the blue house

15) The man who smokes Blends has a neighbour who drinks water.

Who keeps the fish?

Bruin with a maniacal laugh

I really had no idea how to solve this. I figured out some of the things, but now even looking at the answers I can't quite figure out how they were found! *ponders*

Maddy (:

[Camy]

Fiendish Question? *brain starts to overheat* Fiendish Question?

So, who other than Trab, Des and me want to join the 'Bear with a maniacal laugh' hunting party?

- That's me in my hunting regalia!

[Bruin Fisher]

Your question is: can you name all four?

You did not specify if you wanted the words that end in 'dous', so I'm assuming that the 4 words you are looking for are these:

Excluding esoteric technical terms.

I have heard a similar riddle: There are only three words in The English Language that end in '-gry'. One is angry and the other one is hungry. Can you name the third word?

It's quite easy :D.

Maddy (::

Hmm... Of course if you're familiar with the puzzle about 'The English Language' (the third word is 'Language'), it's tempting to think other puzzles work the same way. But mine isn't as sneaky as that - I really do want the four words that end '-dous'.

I'll start you off:

Tremendous

Stupendous

Horrendous

There's three of them, now you've only got to find the fourth.

Bruin

[Trab]

I've got it, but I cheated. <blush> I won't tell. It just wouldn't be right.

[Madrigal]

Pfft, that's easy then.

Hazardous.

Maddy (:

[Cole Parker]

There are only three words in The English Language that end in '-gry'. One is angry and the other one is hungry. Can you name the third word?

It's quite easy :D.

Maddy (::

Um, exactly what do you mean by "easy"?

I can think of maybe two other words, but neither are common words, and people would argue vociferously, perhaps angrily, about both of them.

You're not fooling with us, are you?<g>

C

[Kapitano]

By appointment to His Madrigalness:

Excluding esoteric technical terms, there are only four words in the English Language that end with 'dous'.

Can you name all four?

Bruin

According to the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (1997 digital edition) there's 35 words ending in -dous.

"Excluding esoteric technical terms" is a weaseling proviso that could include or exclude any technical term. "Philtre", "Spandrel" and "Nybble" are all technical terms that could be called esoteric, or not, according to mood.

If you admit "hazardous" do you also admit "biohazardous"? What about "unhazardous"?

Besides, this isn't a puzzle at all. It's a recall test. Or a test of whether you've got a crossword dictionary to hand. Which I have.

Incidentally, there's actually four words ending in -gry, but two are synonyms and one is highly obscure unless you're an archaeologist.

[Kapitano]

There are only three words in The English Language that end in '-gry'. One is angry and the other one is hungry. Can you name the third word?

It's quite easy :D.

Maddy (::

Um, exactly what do you mean by "easy"?

The third word (in the first paragraph) is "only". In the same way the "center of gravity" is the letter V.

[DesDownunder]

Okay here is a punctuation test for you.

which is correct:

The yolk an egg are white

or

The yolk an egg is white?

[Kapitano]

Assuming you mean "inflexion" instead of "punctuation", and assuming you mean "and" instead of "an"...

Both are possible, but with different meanings. If you're considering the yolk and the egg to be two different things yolked together (so to speak) in the same sentence, then "are" is correct.

You can test it by putting "both" - or "all" for groups of more than two - after "are". "...are both white" is correct, "...is both white" is incorrect, because "both" can only be used with things considered as duos.

If you consider that "yolk and egg" describes a single thing - the substances and structures inside an eggshell - then "The yolk and egg is white" is, strictly speaking, correct, but unusual. The form is occasionally used when describing longer lists of things, not just two.

Also, often we use "is" to predicate adjectives of things that are singular, but habitually described as an aglomeration, for instance:

* Barnes and Noble is closed

* Bill and Ted is a movie franchise

* The Long and the Short and the Tall is an old song

Finally, if "The Yolk and Egg" is the name of a white painted pub, then "The Yolk and Egg is white" would be grammatically correct - and even true.

Kapitano (who teaches English, and who's just had an egg for breakfast)

[DesDownunder]

In haste to post I didn't get my editor to proof it.

It should have read:

Okay here is a grammar test for you.

which is correct:

The yolk of an egg are white

or

The yolk of an egg is white?

please try again, thank you.

[Kapitano]

It's not a grammar test.

It's a general knowledge quiz.

If you actually enjoy this kind of wordplay, go here.

[Bruin Fisher]

"Excluding esoteric technical terms" is a weaseling proviso

I'm not a weasel I'm a bear.

Bruin

[Bruin Fisher]

which is correct:

The yolk of an egg are white

or

The yolk of an egg is white?

Good one, Des! I'm resisting the temptation to debate whether 'yolk' should talke the plural form of verb or not - I saw the teeth of your mantrap just in time, peeking out from the screen you covered it with!

I love these puzzles - does that make me a nerd?

Hi my name is Bruin and I'm a nerd. (sniffle)

[Bruin Fisher]

Can anyone come up with an English word that ends -mt (without using a dictionary)? There is at least one!

And how about this - it's a logic puzzle.

A man lives in a house with only one clock and no other timepiece. He forgets to wind his clock and it stops so he doesn't know the time.

He walks to his friend's house, stays the night, walks back and now he knows what the correct time is so he resets his clock.

How does he do it?

Additional information: his friend's house is equipped with a clock but he doesn't borrow it or any other timepeice. He does not make use of radio or any other electronic means to get a time signal.

Bruin