Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site trwrba.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!bellcore!decvax!decwrl!pyramid!hplabs!sdcrdcf!trwrb!trwrba!pro
From: pro@trwrba.UUCP (Peter R. Olpe)
Newsgroups: net.puzzle
Subject: Mystery puzzles
Message-ID: <1907@trwrba.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 9-Mar-86 14:18:54 EST
Article-I.D.: trwrba.1907
Posted: Sun Mar  9 14:18:54 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 12-Mar-86 21:55:57 EST
Organization: TRW EDS, Redondo Beach, CA
Lines: 64



When I was in college I used to play a sort of 'mystery' puzzle
that goes like this:  The 'narrator' gives a one or two sentence
description of a situation, and then the 'players' have to guess
the mystery by asking the narrator 'yes' or 'no' questions.  (That is,
the narrator can only answer 'yes' or 'no'.)  
 
    A typical mystery is:
 
'A man was found dead in a desert, with no water, and wearing a backpack.'
 
And the questions might go something like:
 
Q:  Did he die because he ran out of water?   (no)
Q:  Is there anything around him but sand?    (no)
Q:  Did he ride a camel to where he is?       (no)
Q:  Did he walk there?                        (no)
Q:  Hmmm...  Was there any footprints around? (no)
Q:  Does the backpack have something in it?   (yes)
Q: .......
 
The answer is that the guy jumped out of a plane and his parachute
(the backpack) failed to open.  This particular mystery is one of the
easier ones, partly because there are a lot of clues in the opening
statement.
 
Other puzzles include:
'A man stopped in front of a hotel and realized he was bankrupt.'
'The music stopped and the man died.'
'A man turned on his car radio, then shot himself.'
'A man asked a bartender for a drink.  The bartender pulled a gun on
   him, then the man said 'thank you' and left.'
 
These are a lot of fun to play, both for the people trying to guess the
answer and for the 'narrator'.  The questions are often very hard to
answer, even though they are yes-or-no answers,  and the players often
go out on some tangent that leads them to very bizarre situations/solutions.
It is more fun with a lot of people asking questions, but if a player
guesses the answer he/she should drop out of the game so that the
rest of the players can continue.
 
The game often lasts 5-10 minutes per mystery, depending on the number
of people asking questions.  The problem is that once the mystery
is solved the players usually ask for another one.
 
I have a list of about 20 mysteries, with their solutions.  What I
am really interested in is NEW mysteries that I can add to my list.
If anybody knows of any of these puzzles, I would
greatly appreciate them sending me the mystery/solution.  If anyone
would like a copy of my list, I would be more than happy to send it
to them.  Thanks.
-- 
                            ...ucbvax!\        -Pete Olpe-
                                       \
         UUCP Path:  ...decwrl!decvax!trwrb!trwrba!pro
                                       /
                            ...hplabs!/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Where are we going?
 Planet 10!
When?
 Real Soon!
------------------------------------------------------------------------