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View Full Version : OT - Alarm clock puzzle

QuikSand
07-17-2003, 07:34 AM
So, I'm a restless sleeper. I tend to toss and turn, occasionally thrash about and upset the nightstand, and fairly frequently wake myself up in the middle of the night.

This happened to me not too long ago, and I woke myself up in the middle of the night. In the darkness, all I could see was the glow of my alarm clock, which told me that it was around midnight... and so I drifted back to sleep.

I woke up again, after what I was sure was at least an hour or two of sleep, and got another look at my alarm clock. To my shock, it was telling me that it was now forty minutes earlier than it was the last time I woke up and saw it.

Now that's a puzzle! How do I sleep for an hour or two, wake up and find that my clock has moved backwards by forty minutes?

How can all this be explained?
VPI97
07-17-2003, 07:56 AM
Your clock was upside down.

The first time you looked at the clock you saw that the display read 12:01. Actually, the time was just 10:21.

You saw:
_ _
| _| 0 | | |
| |_ 0 |_| |
The actual time was:
_ _
| | | 0 _| |
| |_| 0 |_ |
Nearly two hours later, at 12:11, you awoke again. This time you saw:
_
| | 0 _| |
| | 0 |_ |
When the actual time was:
_
| _| 0 | |
| |_ 0 | |
Bee
07-17-2003, 08:00 AM
If you are going to go to that much trouble making the digital clock numbers, you could at least change the text color to red or green or something. ;)
QuikSand
07-17-2003, 08:08 AM
That is a very impressive job of representing the readout, I must agree.

Oh, by the way... ding, ding!
Marmel
07-17-2003, 08:58 AM
This was an easy one Quiksand. You are slipping.
Anrhydeddu
07-17-2003, 09:36 AM
In a similar vain, fill in the missing numbers in this series:


5 2 2 ? 2 1 ? 0 2 1
cuervo72
07-17-2003, 10:05 AM
Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
In a similar vain, fill in the missing numbers in this series:


You're risking a citation from the grammar police! :D

Or was that a mirror hint?
Anrhydeddu
07-17-2003, 10:18 AM
You're right. What's the phrase I'm looking for?
cuervo72
07-17-2003, 10:22 AM
Vein? Or some other phrase directed towards me :)

Question....does the series continue, or is what is shown complete?
Anrhydeddu
07-17-2003, 10:25 AM
Vein. So it was GrantDawg typo, right?

It is a complete series.
VPI97
07-17-2003, 10:37 AM
5 2 2 3 2 1 4 0 2 1

The number of unused LED "segments" when displaying the numbers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0.
Anrhydeddu
07-17-2003, 10:39 AM
Good job, VPI. You are 2 for 2.