Lateral thinking

[Paladin-X]

1. You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus

• An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
• An old friend who once saved your life.
• The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Knowing that there can only be one passenger in your car, whom would you choose?


2. Acting on an anonymous phone call, the police raid a house to arrest a suspected murderer. They don't know what he looks like but they know his name is John and that he is inside the house. The police bust in on a carpenter, a lorry driver, a mechanic and a fireman all playing poker. Without hesitation or communication of any kind, they immediately arrest the fireman. How do they know they've got their man?


3. A man lives in the penthouse of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. Upon his return, however, he can only travel halfway up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way - unless it's raining. What is the explanation for this?


4. How could a baby fall out of a twenty-story building onto the ground and live?


5. Bad Boy Bubby was warned by his mother never to open the cellar door or he would see things that he was not meant to see. One day while his mother was out he did open the cellar door. What did he see?


6. A man and his son are in a car crash. The father is killed and the child is taken to hospital gravely injured. When he gets there, the surgeon says, 'I can't operate on this boy - for he is my son!!!' How can this possibly be?


7. There are six eggs in the basket. Six people each take one of the eggs. How can it be that one egg is left in the basket?

 

[sassafras]

1. You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus

• An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
• An old friend who once saved your life.
• The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Knowing that there can only be one passenger in your car, whom would you choose?

I get someone to drive the lady. Either way, I keep in touch with my partner and my friend because I weather out the storm with one of them and have to get the car back from the other.

2. Acting on an anonymous phone call, the police raid a house to arrest a suspected murderer. They don't know what he looks like but they know his name is John and that he is inside the house. The police bust in on a carpenter, a lorry driver, a mechanic and a fireman all playing poker. Without hesitation or communication of any kind, they immediately arrest the fireman. How do they know they've got their man?

Probably because the other two are women.

3. A man lives in the penthouse of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. Upon his return, however, he can only travel halfway up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way - unless it's raining. What is the explanation for this?

I don't have a single idea.

4. How could a baby fall out of a twenty-story building onto the ground and live?

If it wasn't the top floor, and there were some bushes to break its fall, it could very well survive.

5. Bad Boy Bubby was warned by his mother never to open the cellar door or he would see things that he was not meant to see. One day while his mother was out he did open the cellar door. What did he see?

I have absolutely no idea.

6. A man and his son are in a car crash. The father is killed and the child is taken to hospital gravely injured. When he gets there, the surgeon says, 'I can't operate on this boy - for he is my son!!!' How can this possibly be?

Aww, I recognized this one from a Malcolm Gladwell book. The surgeon is a mother. By chance, this kind of thinking is also how I figured out the fireman murder one.

7. There are six eggs in the basket. Six people each take one of the eggs. How can it be that one egg is left in the basket?

This one is easy. You take the egg with the basket.

 

[Lemonworld]

1. Old friend. Meanwhile my perfect partner has already come up with some incredible daring plan to get the old lady to a doctor, saved her life, and gone back to rescue my friend. In the intensity of the moment, Old Friend + Perfect Partner fall in love and live happily ever after. Although I'm a little sad and wistful, I'm happy for them both and get to be godmother of their beautiful children. They name their first daughter after the old lady who brought them together and later died of influenza.

2. They found a copy of American Psycho in the pocket of his fire-coat. And a bloodied axe.

3. He is superstitious. And working on his fitness.

4. The invisible stork came out of nowhere, caught the baby in its pillowcase and gently placed it on the ground.

5. Erotic watercolours. And dusty jars full of old teeth.

6. Gay. Two fathers.

7. Two of the people are in love and thought it would be romantic to share one egg. They take it home, boil it, and eat it by candlelight.

This was fun. :yo:

 

[hk427f3]

1. Is the old lady actually going to die? If so, I would park my car, give the keys to my old friend, tell him to take the old lady to the hospital or whatever, and then have some nice alone time with the future lover person in the rain.

4. The first 19 stories are underground.

6. The boy was adopted by two gay men.

7. The sixth person takes their egg while it's still inside the basket.

 

[MindYourHead]

1. You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus

• An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
• An old friend who once saved your life.
• The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Knowing that there can only be one passenger in your car, whom would you choose?

The old lady, and have the friend drive her to the hospital.
Wait for the bus with the new found perfect partner.

2. Acting on an anonymous phone call, the police raid a house to arrest a suspected murderer. They don't know what he looks like but they know his name is John and that he is inside the house. The police bust in on a carpenter, a lorry driver, a mechanic and a fireman all playing poker. Without hesitation or communication of any kind, they immediately arrest the fireman. How do they know they've got their man?

The fireman is the only male.

3. A man lives in the penthouse of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. Upon his return, however, he can only travel halfway up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way - unless it's raining. What is the explanation for this?

Too short to reach the upper buttons, and when it is raining, he doesn't go out.

4. How could a baby fall out of a twenty-story building onto the ground and live?

Fell out a ground floor window.

5. Bad Boy Bubby was warned by his mother never to open the cellar door or he would see things that he was not meant to see. One day while his mother was out he did open the cellar door. What did he see?

Daylight?

6. A man and his son are in a car crash. The father is killed and the child is taken to hospital gravely injured. When he gets there, the surgeon says, 'I can't operate on this boy - for he is my son!!!' How can this possibly be?

The surgeon is the Mother.

7. There are six eggs in the basket. Six people each take one of the eggs. How can it be that one egg is left in the basket?

The last person takes the basket. Egg and all.

 

[Nixie]

1. You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus

• An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
• An old friend who once saved your life.
• The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Knowing that there can only be one passenger in your car, whom would you choose?
The old lady after I got the phone number for the perfect partner. I wouldn't give my car to anybody!


2. Acting on an anonymous phone call, the police raid a house to arrest a suspected murderer. They don't know what he looks like but they know his name is John and that he is inside the house. The police bust in on a carpenter, a lorry driver, a mechanic and a fireman all playing poker. Without hesitation or communication of any kind, they immediately arrest the fireman. How do they know they've got their man?
He's wearing something with the name John on it.

3. A man lives in the penthouse of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. Upon his return, however, he can only travel halfway up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way - unless it's raining. What is the explanation for this?
He can't reach the top floor button for the ride up. When it is raining, he has his umbrella to push the button.

4. How could a baby fall out of a twenty-story building onto the ground and live?
Nothing says he fell out of a window on the 20th floor, only that he fell out of a window in a building that had 20 floors.

5. Bad Boy Bubby was warned by his mother never to open the cellar door or he would see things that he was not meant to see. One day while his mother was out he did open the cellar door. What did he see?
His birthday or Christmas presents.

6. A man and his son are in a car crash. The father is killed and the child is taken to hospital gravely injured. When he gets there, the surgeon says, 'I can't operate on this boy - for he is my son!!!' How can this possibly be?
It is his mother.

7. There are six eggs in the basket. Six people each take one of the eggs. How can it be that one egg is left in the basket?
Someone kept their egg in the basket.

The cellar one kinda stumped me and is a total guess.

 

[Paladin-X]

1.

Spoiler

The old lady of course! After helping the old lady into the car, you can give your keys to your friend, and wait with your perfect partner for the bus

2.

Spoiler

The fireman is the only man in the room. The rest of the poker players are women.

3.

Spoiler

The man is a dwarf. He can't reach the upper elevator buttons, but he can ask people to push them for him. He can also push them with his umbrella.

4.

Spoiler

The baby fell out of a ground floor window.

5.

Spoiler

When Bad Boy Bubby opened the cellar door he saw the living room and, through its windows, the garden. He had never seen these before because his mother had kept him all his life in the cellar.

6.

Spoiler

The surgeon can not operate on her own son; she is his mother.

7.

Spoiler

The last person took the basket with the last egg still inside.