Friday, July 3, 2009

Question #22

One of these things is not like the others

Triangulation
Translation
Reflection
Rotation

Answer #21

One of these things is not like the others

Goofy
Jokey
Brainy
Vanity

Please go to the Question #21 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

At first glance, the answer might seem to be that the first three are adjectives and the last is a noun, but that's not a particularly interesting or compelling solution. The better solution is that Jokey, Brainy and Vanity are all Smurfs, while Goofy is not.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Question #21

One of these things is not like the others

Goofy
Jokey
Brainy
Vanity

Answer #20

One of these things is not like the others

Dodo
Coelacanth
Apatosaurus
Wooly Mammoth

Please go to the Question #20 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

The coelacanth is a type of fish which was believed to be extinct (for over 65 million years!), but was discovered in 1938 to still be around. The other three animals listed aren't still around -- they're actually extinct. So as the only living animal on the list, the coelacanth does not belong.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Question #20

One of these things is not like the others

Dodo
Coelacanth
Apatosaurus
Wooly Mammoth

Answer #19

One of these things is not like the others

En passant
J'Adoube
Touché
FIDE

Please go to the Question #19 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

The french is a bit of a red herring here. "En passant" ("in passing")is a term in chess which refers to special pawn capture. "J'Adoube" (or "I adjust") is something a chess player would say if they want to adjust the position of a piece on the board, and not actually make a move. And FIDE stands for Fédération Internationale des Échecs -- The World Chess Federation.

The remaining term has nothing to do with chess. "Touché" is a term in fencing used to acknowledge a hit. It is not like the others, so it does not belong.

Friday, June 26, 2009

Question #19

One of these things is not like the others

En passant
J'Adoube
Touché
FIDE

Answer #18

One of these things is not like the others

12 1/2
33 1/3
45
78

Please go to the Question #18 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

Whenever people see a list of numbers like this, the first instinct is to find a mathematical relationship between them. In this particular puzzle, that would lead you astray. It's actually a music question!

Three of these are record formats. The number is the speed (in RPMs) that you play the record. The "45" is probably the most familiar in this context, since that number at one point became synonymous with the fact that these records were "singles". Other records are played at 33 1/3 RPMs, and 78 RPMs. But there was never a record format played at 12 1/2 RPMs, so that is what does not belong.

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Question #18

One of these things is not like the others

12 1/2
33 1/3
45
78

Answer #17

One of these things is not like the others

"General Kenobi, years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars."
"He has too much of his father in him."
"Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son."
"Your father he is."

Please go to the Question #17 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

Each of the quotes is from the Star Wars films.

The first is spoken by Princess Leia (or a holographic image of her, anyway) in the original 1977 film. She is asking for Obi-Wan Kenobi to help the rebellion, based on the fact that he had helped her (adoptive) father years previous.

The second quote is spoken by Aunt Beru, referring to how Luke Skywalker is too much like his father (Anakin) to simply be a farmer. This quote is also from the original Star Wars film ("Episode IV").

Darth Vader speaks the third quote to Luke in The Empire Strikes Back, in the scene in which he reveals that he is Luke's father.

The last quote is from Yoda, in Return of the Jedi, confirming to Luke that Vader was telling the truth -- he is indeed Luke's father.

The commonality is who the "father" refers to in each of the quotes. Darth Vader / Anakin Skywalker is the father in the last three quotes. Princess Leia, however, was certainly not referring to Vader when she tried to enlist Kenobi's help. So that is the quote which does not belong. It is not like the others.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Question #17

One of these things is not like the others

"General Kenobi, years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars."
"He has too much of his father in him."
"Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son."
"Your father he is."

Answer #16

One of these things is not like the others

white
black
cyan
magenta

Please go to the Question #16 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

Over on Twitter, several people chose black, with the quite-reasonable explanation that the others all come from emitted or reflected light, while black comes from the absence of light.

Perhaps a better choice for the list would have been white, yellow, cyan, magenta, given this alternate solution.

The intended solution relates to the color model used in four-color printing presses. Computer monitors and televisions use additive colors, where the combination of the component colors (Red, Green, and Blue -- RGB) add up to white. That works with light. But with ink or paint, adding all the component colors together produces black. To get richer blacks in print, a fourth color of ink is included -- Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and blacK -- CMYK.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Question #16

One of these things is not like the others

white
black
cyan
magenta

Answer #15

One of these things is not like the others

fir
pine
maple
spruce

Please go to the Question #15 post if you haven't had a chance work on this one yet, since the text below contains the solution.

These are all kinds of trees, of course. Fir, pine and spruce are coniferous, while maple is deciduous, so it does not belong. It is not like the others.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Question #15

One of these things is not like the others

fir
pine
maple
spruce