wu :: forums
        (http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~wwu/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi)
      

        riddles >> easy >> Socks are back!
        
(Message started by: Iceman on Oct 11th, 2007, 8:21am)
Title: Socks are back!
Post by Iceman on Oct 11th, 2007, 8:21am
There are two pairs of socks thrown about in Jack's drawer, white and black respectively. Tomorrow he must be present at an important meeting, and hiss boss told him to wear matching socks, and it was no joke. So when he wakes up, he is in a hurry to go to work, but it is still night and electricity is down. Still, he doesn't pull out in the dark all of the above socks, but calmly goes straight to the meeting and the boss is satisfied with his attire. Explain.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by towr on Oct 11th, 2007, 8:53am
[hide]Each pair is bunched up together?
That's the natural state of all my clean socks, anyway..[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Iceman on Oct 11th, 2007, 9:31am
Good try. Then again, that is precisely why I have specified that socks be thrown about, so nope.  ;)
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Iceman on Oct 11th, 2007, 9:32am
Btw, today I got myself an electronic mouse, w/o the little ball. Heh, it is really neat.  8)
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by towr on Oct 11th, 2007, 10:39am
I could throw my socks about as much as I want, but they'd still stay paired.

Maybe he put his socks on before he went to sleep, after all "he doesn't pull out in the dark all of the above socks, but calmly goes straight to the meeting".

Or perhaps he has a bucket of black paint next to his bed, and dips his socks in, so they'll have the same color regardless of what they were before.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by denis on Oct 11th, 2007, 11:53am
[hide]He pulled out three socks to guarantee a complete pair.[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Aryabhatta on Oct 11th, 2007, 12:05pm
[hide] He wore the black ones, which were cooler (to touch) than the white ones [/hide]

or

[hide] he just took three of them and wore his shoes in the cab (which had interior lights) he had called to get to work that day [/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by RandomSam on Oct 11th, 2007, 12:28pm

on 10/11/07 at 08:21:10, Iceman wrote:
There are two pairs of socks thrown about in Jack's drawer, white and black respectively.

So... [hide]The socks are white and the drawer is black?[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Iceman on Oct 11th, 2007, 3:10pm

on 10/11/07 at 12:28:08, RandomSam wrote:
So... [hide]The socks are white and the drawer is black?[/hide]

Nice try.



on 10/11/07 at 11:53:19, denis wrote:
[hide]He pulled out three socks to guarantee a complete pair.[/hide]

This certainly is the winner, but it represents an answer well known around here. So Aryabhatta is on the right track regarding the intended answer, which is....... better?  ;)




Btw, the above mouse is emitting red light all of the time, even when I shut down the computer. Is that normal?   ???
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by FiBsTeR on Oct 11th, 2007, 3:16pm
[hide]He does not take any socks, but instead goes out and buys new pink ones.[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Iceman on Oct 11th, 2007, 3:17pm
Nope.




on 10/11/07 at 10:39:01, towr wrote:
I could throw my socks about as much as I want, but they'd still stay paired.

Yes, I see your point, but I was thinking of my own socks, you know, mostly socks for sneakers. I never arrange them the way you do yours.  ;)
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by JiNbOtAk on Oct 11th, 2007, 6:02pm
The white socks are [hide]flourescent, they glow in the dark. [/hide]

Or he could always use the [hide]flashlight[/hide] next to his bed, or the [hide]candle[/hide] he used to guide his way to the bathroom.


<By the way, some optical mouse do behave that way, you shouldn't be overly worried. How much did you pay for that mouse anyway ? I'm asking because those mouse are very common here, they're about 5 euros each. I thought you of all people would have used them ages ago.  :P>
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by denis on Oct 11th, 2007, 6:51pm
Feel the socks: [hide]The black ones are a bit more rigid/rough to the touch due to the dye used. [/hide]

[hide]Even when electricity is down, the mobile phone and phone land line still works. Use the light on the phone keypad to see whats in the drawer[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by FiBsTeR on Oct 11th, 2007, 7:13pm

on 10/11/07 at 18:02:44, JiNbOtAk wrote:
The white socks are [hide]flourescent, they glow in the dark. [/hide]


You mean [hide]phosphorescent, and there's no way atoms in the phosphorescent agents could stay in their excited states for so long, especially since the socks are stuck in a drawer and not exposed to any sunlight...[/hide]  :P
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by JiNbOtAk on Oct 11th, 2007, 7:51pm

on 10/11/07 at 19:13:40, FiBsTeR wrote:
You mean [hide]phosphorescent, and there's no way atoms in the phosphorescent agents could stay in their excited states for so long, especially since the socks are stuck in a drawer and not exposed to any sunlight...[/hide]  :P


Yup, that's the word.  :-/

In that case, maybe the socks are different [hide]fabrics[/hide] ?
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Grimbal on Oct 12th, 2007, 2:44am
[hide]Jack uses a lighter or a torchlight to identify the socks.[/hide]

[hide]Jack wears sandals.  You don't wear socks with sandals.[/hide]

[hide]The black socks are thick wool, the white are cotton.[/hide]

[hide]Jack has only one leg.[/hide]

[hide]Jack wears boots.[/hide]

[hide]Jack was lucky.[/hide]

[hide]Jack was not lucky.  He was wearing a black and a white sock.  But he argued that his socks are matching ... with the other pair in the drawer.[/hide]

[hide]Jack's boss is blind.[/hide]

[hide]Jack is blind.  He is used to tell his socks apart by touch.[/hide]

[hide]One pair of socks is clean, the other pair he wore it the whole week.  That is why it is black by the way.[/hide]

[hide]When Jacks arrives at the meeing, it is still night and the electricity is still out.[/hide]

[hide]Jack undoes the thread of 2 socks, splits the threads in 2, spins 2 new threads pairing fibres of different socks, knits new socks from these threads, and wears these black, white or gray socks at the meeting.  ...  Yes, he does that in the dark.  ...  Yes, he is a very capable man.[/hide]

[hide]Jack has a new optical mouse that  is emitting red light all of the time, even when he shuts down the computer.  That is normal.  It helps to sort out black and white socks at night.[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Iceman on Oct 12th, 2007, 6:02am

on 10/11/07 at 18:02:44, JiNbOtAk wrote:
How much did you pay for that mouse anyway ? I'm asking because those mouse are very common here, they're about 5 euros each.

About $22.



on 10/11/07 at 18:51:11, denis wrote:
Feel the socks: [hide]The black ones are a bit more rigid/rough to the touch due to the dye used. [/hide]

Some other ideas are fine but this is the intended answer.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Ghost Sniper on Oct 12th, 2007, 7:03am
[hide]Jack is an owl, so he can see very well in the dark.[/hide]

[hide]Jack has mini-sensors in the socks, so he knows which one is which.[/hide]
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Grimbal on Oct 12th, 2007, 7:59am

on 10/12/07 at 07:03:07, Ghost Sniper wrote:
[hide]Jack has mini-sensors in the socks, so he knows which one is which.[/hide]

All his socks have RFID chips.  If he tries to take 2 mismatched socks an intentionally computer-like voice starts repeating:
"war-ning ... sock mis-match con-di-tion de-tec-ted ple-ase cor-rect be-fore pro-cee-ding ... war-ning ... sock mis-match con-di-tion de-tec-ted ple-ase cor-rect be-fore pro-cee-ding ..."

Thanks to this $6000 device, he has saved his career a few times already.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by gotit on Oct 12th, 2007, 3:35pm
The boss was color blind. He could not distinguish between black and white. ;)
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by sxiz on Oct 28th, 2007, 7:56pm
^ Color blind people can still see shades. Black socks would still appear much darker than white socks.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Grimbal on Oct 29th, 2007, 2:23am
The electricity was out also at the boss's place, so the boss also had mismatched socks.  When Jack opened his mouth pointing at his boss's feet, he met such a dark look that he gathered not only that the boss is perfectly aware of the color of his socks, but also that it is not the moment to mention socks to him.  So he just shut up.  It is a pity, Jacks was about to propose that they switch one sock to get 2 matched pairs.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by DavioMagnifico on Oct 30th, 2007, 8:47am
Th correct answer to the question IS that [hide][/hide]He draws 3 socks[hide][/hide]
Also the original riddle is that there i a drawer with multiple black socks and multiple white socks, not that it matters. ;)
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by Grimbal on Oct 30th, 2007, 9:18am
If the answer is different and the question is different, maybe it was a different riddle altogether?
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by jollytall on Nov 30th, 2007, 6:22am
My white socks are short (ankle) and the black ones are long (knee). So for me it is easy.
Title: Re: Socks are back!
Post by tiber13 on Dec 7th, 2007, 9:52am
the mouse with the still glowing light is the best answer.

Icey, i thought you were better then the ball mouses...

oh, he knew wich side he threw the socks in the drawer.


Powered by YaBB 1 Gold - SP 1.4!
Forum software copyright © 2000-2004 Yet another Bulletin Board