8 stimulating brain teasers and their answers

Challenge your mind with these mind-bending brain teasers, logic questions, and optical illusions. Can you tackle them all without a single mistake?

IQ Test Gone Viral

Join the millions who have attempted this viral IQ test shared on Facebook. Some find it a breeze while others struggle. Which group do you fall into?

6 + 4 = 2109 + 2 = 7118 + 5 = 3135 + 2 = 377 + 6 = 1139 + 8 = 11710 + 6 = 41615 + 3 = 1218?? + ?? = 123

Einstein's Enigma

Legend has it that Albert Einstein devised this riddle in his youth, challenging only 2 percent of people to solve it. Although its authorship is not confirmed, it remains a captivating puzzle.

The Setup: Five houses, each with a unique color. Each house is occupied by a person of different nationality who has a distinct pet, preferred beverage, and chosen brand of cigar. No two people share the same pet, smoke the same brand, or drink the same beverage.

The Question: Who owns the fish?

Here are the clues:

1. The Brit resides in the red house.2. The Swede keeps dogs as pets.3. The Dane indulges in tea.4. The green house is to the left of the white house.5. The owner of the green house drinks coffee.6. The one who smokes Pall Mall rears birds.7. The yellow house owner smokes Dunhill.8. The resident of the center house drinks milk.9. The Norwegian occupies the first house.10. The person who smokes blends lives next to the cat owner.11. The horse owner lives next to the Dunhill smoker.12. The one who smokes BlueMaster drinks beer.13. The German smoker prefers Prince brand.14. The Norwegian lives next to the blue house.15. The blend smoker has a neighbor who drinks water.

It's advisable to create a visual chart on paper to solve this intricate puzzle.

1. Elevator Mystery

A man resides on the tenth floor of his building. Every morning, he takes the elevator down to the ground floor for work. In the afternoon, upon his return, he rides the elevator to the seventh floor and climbs the stairs for the final three flights. Curiously, he despises walking. Why on Earth does he take this rather peculiar route?

Hint: The elevator and building design are fully functional. It's simply his own choice.

2. Match Magic 

In this follow-up to the moving matches brain teaser, you are allowed to move two matches. Remember, the digits of the number can be altered.

3. Life on Mars

Imagine being whisked away to Mars by aliens who present you with an offer. Would you prefer spending five enlightening hours on Mars, with the secrets of the universe revealed, or an entire day on Mars accompanied by the same secrets plus a generous reward of $5 million in Earth currency? Both options provide sufficient oxygen and transport you back when the allotted time is up. The tricky part is deciding between knowledge and wealth. What will be your choice?

Hint: There's an actual right and wrong answer.

4. Page Predicament

Consider this puzzling question involving a mischievous boy and a book. The boy engages in play and tears out pages with numbers 7, 8, 100, 101, 222, and 223. How many sheets of paper did he manage to tear?

5. Everything and Nothing

When you turn me on my side, I symbolize everything. When you split me in half, I represent nothing. What am I?

6. Einstein's Riddle Redux

Prepare yourself for another riddle commonly attributed to Einstein.

A solitary individual stumbles across a bear in a barren wasteland. As fear grips them both, they each flee in opposite directions. The person heads north, while the bear chooses the path westward. Suddenly, the individual halts, turns to the south, and shoots the bear dead. Can you discern the color of the bear?

Hint: Suppose the bear moved approximately 3.14 times faster than the human in the westward direction. Shooting straight ahead could lead to a different outcome, but to secure the trophy, a southward direction was necessary.

Answers to the Brain Teasers:

Viral Facebook IQ Test. The answer is 12 + 11 = 123. To obtain this result, split the number: 12 and 11. Look for two numbers that, when added, equal 23 and, when subtracted, result in 1.

Einstein's Fish Riddle. The German owner is the proud fish parent. Charts and deductions from the University of Delaware can assist in unraveling this mystery.

Elevator Mystery. The man is of short stature, enabling him to conveniently reach the ground floor button but only able to tap the elevator button for the seventh floor. Thus, he walks the remaining three floors.

Moving Matches. The solution is 51181. Manipulate the matches to form this number.

Life on Mars. The correct answer is to spend five hours on Mars, delving into the secrets of the universe. A Martian day encompasses 25 hours, making the other choice fatal due to limited oxygen.

Page Predicament. The answer can vary depending on the book, either four or five. Determine the starting page to calculate the torn sheets accurately.

Everything and Nothing. The answer is the number 8, with its visual resemblance to infinity when turned sideways and splitting it in half forming two zeros.

Einstein's Riddle Redux. The bear is white. By shooting south, where shooting west would still yield treasure, it implies that the "north" and "west" statements are relative to each individual's backward direction.

Enjoy these stimulating brain teasers and challenge yourself to solve the unsolvable!