The Great Riddle Thread

The main forum of the Societas Via Romana. Anything not covered by one of the Collegia is probably being discussed here!

Moderator: Aldus Marius

Postby Anonymous on Mon Jan 24, 2005 7:37 pm

Quintus Pomponius Atticus wrote:My guess : 1113213211


Congrats!

:party:
Anonymous
 

Postby Quintus Pomponius Atticus on Tue Jan 25, 2005 9:44 am

Salve Coruncani,

The clue is that a line always numbers the numbers in the line above, so :

1
11 (in the line above, there is one one : 11)
21 (in the line above, there are two ones : 21)
1211 (in the line above there is one two and one one : 12-11)
111221 etc.
312211
13112221

Vale,

Atticus
Quintus Pomponius Atticus
Praetor

"Ars longa, vita brevis" - Hippocrates
Quintus Pomponius Atticus
Senator
Senator
 
Posts: 500
Joined: Wed Aug 28, 2002 6:03 pm
Location: Belgica

Postby Tiberius Dionysius Draco on Tue Jan 25, 2005 6:56 pm

Salvete Romani,

here's a small one to kep you going at it:

No-legs lay on one-leg, two legs sat near on three legs, four legs got some.

So who's who?

Valete,
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
User avatar
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sun Sep 01, 2002 5:18 pm
Location: Belgica

Re: I think I know...

Postby Tiberius Dionysius Draco on Tue Jan 25, 2005 11:17 pm

Salve Tiberi,

Ti. Coruncanius wrote:If I recall correctly, this is one of the riddles that Bilbo Baggins and Gollum asked... The answer is something like a poached fish (no legs) sits on a plate on a table (one leg); the man (two legs) sits on a stool (three legs) and eats the meal. Then he gives the scraps to the dog or cat (four legs).


Correct, it does indeed come from The Hobbit, though I had read it in a fairy tale book before reading it in The Hobbit.

In the fairy tale the answer was:

no-leg => a fish
one-leg => leg of the man on which the fish lay while he was cleaning it
two-legs => the man cleaning the fish
three-legs => the stool upon which the man sat
four-legs => the cat stealing the fish

Either way, your answer was correct, as for your riddle:

Ti. Coruncanius wrote:Black within
Red without
Four corners roundabout

What am I referring to?


Eh, something burned inside an oven or something?

Vale,
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
User avatar
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sun Sep 01, 2002 5:18 pm
Location: Belgica

Re: I think I know...

Postby Tiberius Dionysius Draco on Wed Mar 23, 2005 6:30 pm

Salve Coruncani,

Ti. Coruncanius wrote:Black within
Red without
Four corners roundabout


After about two months of thinking about it, I think I finally know:
A chimney

If it's correct, here's my riddle:

What has four legs in the morning,
two legs in the afternoon,
and three legs at night?


It's a classic :)

Vale bene,
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
User avatar
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sun Sep 01, 2002 5:18 pm
Location: Belgica

Re: All Right!

Postby Tiberius Dionysius Draco on Wed Mar 23, 2005 10:18 pm

Salve,

Ti. Coruncanius wrote:I believe the answer to your riddle is: a man.


Aye, it is, I'll give an explanation for those of you that might not know why the answer is a man.

Four legs in the morning: The man is a baby, it crawls on all fours.
Two legs in the afternoon: Man stands up straight, on his two legs.
Three legs in the evening: Old man needs a walking stick.

So anyways, it somebody elses turn to post a new riddle :)

Vale,
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
User avatar
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sun Sep 01, 2002 5:18 pm
Location: Belgica

Postby Primus Aurelius Timavus on Thu Mar 24, 2005 4:37 pm

Wasn't this the riddle that the sphinx asked passers by in Greek mythology?
Primus Aurelius Timavus
Curator, Rogator, Praetor et Patricius
Civis Romanus Sum
User avatar
Primus Aurelius Timavus
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 524
Joined: Sat Sep 14, 2002 11:14 pm
Location: America Italiaque

Postby Tiberius Dionysius Draco on Thu Mar 24, 2005 6:54 pm

Primus Aurelius Tergestus wrote:Wasn't this the riddle that the sphinx asked passers by in Greek mythology?


Yes, in the story of Oedipus if I'm not mistaken.
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
User avatar
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sun Sep 01, 2002 5:18 pm
Location: Belgica

Stegosaurus

Postby Aldus Marius on Mon Apr 04, 2005 5:52 am

Avete amici...

Not a Riddle, exactly; and not the least bit Roman...but a Thing that Made Me Go 'Hmm...', nonetheless:

Among dinosaurs, everyone picks on the Stegosaurus because of his infamously 'walnut-sized brain'. Another truism, however, is that your average human, while possessing vastly more grey matter than a Stegosaurus, seldom uses more than 20% of its potential. (Some estimates say as low as 10%; the exceptions tend to be gurus and swamis and such.) So I ask you:

Who's smarter: A human who uses only 20% of his big brain...or a Stegosaurus who uses 100% of his small one?

(Maybe I should move this to Philosophy...) >({|;-)

In amicitia,
Aldus Marius Peregrinus.
User avatar
Aldus Marius
Curialis
Curialis
 
Posts: 2175
Joined: Wed Sep 11, 2002 3:16 am
Location: At the Ballgame

Here's another riddle!

Postby Anonymous on Wed Jun 15, 2005 4:38 am

Hi y'all!

For riddles, I've got one: What dress does a woman have that she'll never wear?
Anonymous
 

Postby Q Valerius on Thu Jun 16, 2005 2:29 am

Mari,

Basic psychology courses would inform you that humans actually use 100% of their brain, though potential can rarely be numbered, primarily because no one has reached maximum brain capacity to give a standard measure. I think it would be quite impossible. And yes, the human would still be smarter, either way you look at it, for it's not exactly how much gray matter, but the ratio of certain parts of the brain to the others which is the standard measure for intelligence, i.e. the frontal lobe is where higher cognitive activities occur, and if I'm not mistaken the average man using average amounts of cognition would still far be able to outsmart the Stegosaurus which probably didn't use "100%" of its potential either.

vale bene,
Scerio
Q Valerius
Eques
Eques
 
Posts: 393
Joined: Tue Nov 09, 2004 7:06 am

Re: Here's another riddle!

Postby Gnaeus Dionysius Draco on Thu Jun 23, 2005 11:25 am

Numerius Icilius wrote:Hi y'all!

For riddles, I've got one: What dress does a woman have that she'll never wear?


Salad dressing, lol 8)

Draco
Gn. Dionysius Draco Invictus
User avatar
Gnaeus Dionysius Draco
Curialis
Curialis
 
Posts: 1618
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 8:04 pm
Location: Belgica

Re: Here's another riddle!

Postby Curio Agelastus on Mon Jun 27, 2005 12:38 am

Gnæus Dionysius Draco wrote:Salad dressing, lol 8)


Oh dear... :roll:
Marcus Scribonius Curio Agelastus
Rector ColHis, Senator

Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?
User avatar
Curio Agelastus
Senator
Senator
 
Posts: 470
Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2002 9:38 pm

Postby Gnaeus Dionysius Draco on Fri Jul 01, 2005 1:28 pm

Not everyone can be Blackadder :P
Gn. Dionysius Draco Invictus
User avatar
Gnaeus Dionysius Draco
Curialis
Curialis
 
Posts: 1618
Joined: Fri Aug 30, 2002 8:04 pm
Location: Belgica

Postby Tiberius Dionysius Draco on Sun Jul 17, 2005 11:01 am

Salvete!

Here are a few fresh riddles to keep those minds of you working in the holidays (I know I would need it :wink:)

from the beginning of eternity,
to the end of time and space,
to the beginning of every end,
and the end of every place...

and

this creature, part man and part tree,
hates the termite as much as the flea.
his tracks do not match,
and his limbs may detach,
but he’s not a strange creature to see.


Have fun!

Valete bene,
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
User avatar
Tiberius Dionysius Draco
Curator
Curator
 
Posts: 458
Joined: Sun Sep 01, 2002 5:18 pm
Location: Belgica

E-asy

Postby Aldus Marius on Sun Jul 17, 2005 8:06 pm

Salve, Tiberi...

It must be summer; 'cos that was a softball...

1) is the letter 'E' (did we have this one before?)

2) is the Mandrake plant. Long esteemed by alchemists and other brewers of potions, its resemblance to a crude human figure was said to give it magical properties.

Umm...do I have to come up with the next one...?
*rubesco*

(my last one having been very lame indeed...)

In amicitia,
Aldus Marius Peregrinus.
User avatar
Aldus Marius
Curialis
Curialis
 
Posts: 2175
Joined: Wed Sep 11, 2002 3:16 am
Location: At the Ballgame

Previous

Return to General

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 5 guests