The Lady or the Tiger

English Language Arts 10Short Story Unit

What are Brain Teasers?• A brain teaser is a type of puzzle that is written or

spoken, and which requires mental reasoning to solve. The distinguishing characteristic of a brain teaser is that the only thing required to solve it is your brain. Sometimes, a simple calculation or trivia knowledge is necessary, but generally a brain teaser only requires a brain. This is different from other types of puzzles, like Crosswords or Sudoku, which are not considered to be brain teasers, because they involve a lot of work with pencil and paper. Brain teasers are often categorized by their method of construction or by the skill required to solve them.

Once in a Minute

• What is once in a minute, twice in a moment, and never in a thousand years?

• The letter M.

Got the Message?

• What demands an answer but asks no questions?

• A telephone.

Cat and Mouse

• If three cats catch three mice in three minutes, how many cats would be needed to catch 100 mice in 100 minutes?

• The same three cats would do. Since these three cats are averaging one mouse per minute, given 100 minutes, the cats could catch 100 mice.

Single Man

• Four men were in a boat on the lake. The boat turns over, and all four men sink to the bottom of the lake, yet not a single man got wet! Why?

• Because they were all married and not single.

Late for an Appointment

• A man is late for an appointment and, in his haste, takes a corner so fast that only two wheel were on the pavement. A police man is standing on the corner, but he did not give him a ticket. Why?

• He was on a motorcycle.

The Lady or the Tiger

• Our next short story is also a riddle. • It is about a young man that must make a decision.• At the end of the story, you must figure out which

decision he made.