It’s going to be a weekend of talks. I am speaking at Oxford Science Live on Saturday and then giving a ‘sermon’ on humour at the School of Life in London on Sunday. Hope that you can make it.
OK, onto the puzzle. This week it is another classic….
A hunter walked one mile south from his camp. Then he walked one mile west. There he shot a bear. Then he walked one mile north, and found that he was back at his camp. What colour was the bear?
The answer to this puzzle, and 100 others, can be found in a new kindle ebook called PUZZLED, and is available in the UK here and USA here.
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Got it. Altered version of an old but good one.
got it straight away – already knew it
Yeah, knew this one already. An oldie but a goodie.
About 0.2 nanoseconds. Easy one.
Got it a second or two. Unless you’re tricking us…
Too easy. But still fun.
I know, makes sense to me…
Got it while reading. I like the picture, though!
Got. It. Might try and make it to this weekend’s lecture…
Got it…..I think.
Here’s a different question which those who got it might like to try:
A hunter walked one mile North from his camp. Then he walked one mile West. There he shot a bear. Then he walked one mile South, and found that he was back at his camp. What colour was the bear?
Black and white, and not much of a bear at all? 😉
I already know this one, but it comes with a bowlful of weirdness. Will post on the reveal.
It took me a little less than half a minute.
About 2 seconds!
Ah, that’s a clever one. 🙂 But I thought those are endangered.
think i have it, not heard that one before but heard something i think with similar principles many years a go. quite easy if i am right but then i had been faces with that similar problem before
I took a minute, but I got it. I think…
Elementary…
Got it probably 2 sec. Long back had heard similar puzzle.
If you take the bear out of the equation there are two different locations but you’ll need PI to work out the second location
@FleaCircusDirector – infinitely many locations in fact and not all at the same latitude
Wait was he using a compass for these directions? If so how long ago and in what season?
Solved in no time. It’s an oldie, but a goodie.
Solved fairly quickly.
It’s all about the Friday Puzzle.
about 15 seconds. I worked it out, then remembered that I’d heard it before.
I assume I have the answer. Took a few seconds.
It took me a bit, and I don’t know exactly WHY I have the answer, but I know it must be right.
Sorry all but you all have guessed wrong. Think about it!!!
Because where the camp is located there ARE NO BEARS or anything else. It is desolate!!!!
Wouldn’t it a bit more tricky if the bear is excluded?
“A hunter walked one mile south from his camp. Then he walked one mile west. Then he walked one mile north, and found that he was back at his camp. How could this be?”
The bear is important, because without that, there are an infinite number of possible locations for such a camp. See my alternative version of the puzzle above.
hunterX:
Because his camp was one mile wide? 🙂
I have the answer that I think you’re looking for, took me a couple of seconds, but I do think the poor bear was somewhat lost before the hunter managed to shoot it…
huh. old one. we want exclusive new riddles!! :p
No kidding. I love the Richard Wiseman, but these repeats of BEEN THERE DONE THAT are getting old.
hunterX:
If you really want the bear, you could consider this puzzle instead:
“A hunter walked one mile north from his camp. Then he walked one mile west. There he shot a bear. Then he walked one mile south, and found that he was back at his camp. What colour was the bear?”
Fraction of a second for me, but I have a very baffled son who loves your puzzles!
Your son must be very, very bored.
I need to change my previous post and say the bear’s color is knowable and has an actual answer. My previous post is still correct for the ‘common’ answer.
Like hmmmm_tea’s question…I think I have that answer too.
Get a life.
Got it right away about a nano sec 🙂
Snore.
Not sure how long it first took me to solve this one, but I distinctly remember I did. Probably sometime in the late 60’s early 70’s.