the hawks on the roof

[layne67]

My then 7-yr-old had this mathematics problem that asked A farmer saw three hawks on his roof. He shot one. How many were left? Or something to that effect, I can't remember the exact words. Anyway he answered two and he got that right of course. But I remember laughing at the question and saying that the answer should be zero because no hawk in its right mind would stay on the roof after the shot!

Anyway, I saw the same puzzle in this book by Jeffery Deaver 'The Devil's Teardrop' and there are actually more than 2 possible answers. Do you know all the answers?

The puzzle :

Three hawks have been killing a farmer's chickens. One day he sees all three sitting on the roof of his chicken coop. The farmer has just one bullet in his gun and the hawks are so far apart that he can only hit one. He aims at the hawk on the left and shoots and kills it. The bullet doesn't ricochet. How many hawks are left on the roof?

What say you? :)

ETA Disclaimer : The hawks in this puzzle are fictitious and any resemblance to real hawks, living or dead is purely coincidental. In other words, no hawk has been shot dead in the making of this mental exercise.

ETA 2 The sentence "left on the roof" indicates "how many remain" and not the hawks' positions relative to each other.

Sheesh.

Comments

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

That is a *fantastic* display of expanded thinking in that there son of yours. I like the way he thinks things through. ;)

And... I'll say none. He goes to the side of the hawk on the left and shoots through every one of them in a straight line like this:

Man with gun shoots ---> O O O ---> all three hawks go teh ded.

Like my fantastic diagram???!!!!:!L

[lbilover.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm horrible at these kinds of things, but is the second answer 'none' because the other hawks are not on the left?

PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

A father is out with his son on a drive when a large truck runs a stop light and hits them on the driver's side. The father is killed on impact, but his son survives just barely. Needing urgent medical attention, the boy is whisked away to the local hospital. Upon being wheeled into the operating room, the doctor takes one look at the boy and says "I can;t operate on him; he's my son."

How is this possible?

[mochness.livejournal.com]

Um...no clue :P

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

The doc's his mother.

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

Darn, I don't know if there's a trick to the answer, but being a country girl, I'd say none, because the other two would've flown away.

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

Oooh yer goooood. ;)

[montmorency.livejournal.com]

Oh, dear. I would have to object to the question on the grounds that the hawk shouldn't be killed - it was simply behaving in its natural way. I do feel that it's our duty, as the earthly creatures with far and away the most intelligence, to figure out how to outsmart birds and beasts rather than kill them. Figure out some other way to keep the chickens from the hawks. Not that I'm a rancher or farmer who has to deal with this sort of situation.

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

Okay, here's another one!! ;)

You are a bus driver in a busy city. During the end of the workday, there are twenty people on the bus. At the first stop, three get off and four get on. At the third, one gets off and one gets on. At the sixth, ten people get off and no one gets on.
With this information given, what color are the bus driver's eyes?

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

*snort* Y'got me with that one.

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

Ya dunno it??

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

Nope.

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

Read the very first sentence then the very LAST sentence, ignoring the entire number-people-bus thing. ;)

[claudia603.livejournal.com]

hee. I am sometimes very good at these types of puzzles, but my brain isn't working this way today! :D

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

Oh, for pete's sake! *snorfle* I gots blue eyes. And no braims.

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

All about the unnecessary info, baby. ;)

[violettefemme.livejournal.com]

I spent a considerable amount of time thinking about this... (when i should have been working)

1. No birds are left, they all flew away at the shot
2. Two birds left, the one was shot the other two are hard of hearing.
3. one bird left, only one was hard of hearing.
4. No birds left, the bullet goes through sideways and hits all three
5. one bird left, the bullet goes through sideways and hits two.

There are about a BILLION Answers

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[aprilkat.livejournal.com]

Ha ha ha ha! Took me so many times to figure this out!

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

Isn't it fun? :D How I barrage layne with my inanity.

[layne67.livejournal.com]

Sweetie!!! The hawks are up there on the roof, the farmer's on the ground, he can't shoot like that!

Anyway there are more than one answers and you're required to give them all. Clue - this isn't a trick question, it's straightforward with with straightforward answers. Remember, more than one answers ;D

Fantastic diagram!

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[aprilkat.livejournal.com]

BTW, I so totally DID know the doctor one!

[layne67.livejournal.com]

Heh heh, don't think of this as a riddle with trick question but a straightforward puzzle with more than 1 answers. And yes, one of the answers is none but not because the other hawks are not on the left! C'mon, think some more!

Re: PS... anudder riddle. ;)

[layne67.livejournal.com]

I know I know I know! Brown eyes, like mine!! I didn't read the others' answers, promise! I would have known the doc's one too if I have time to think but I read mews's answer. Hee!

[layne67.livejournal.com]

Think! This is NOT a trick question, but it has more than one possible answers.

:)

[honeyandvinegar.livejournal.com]

He climbed up a ladder, he did, he did! LOL!
I dunno!!!!