Riddle Minute

[nickspoon]

Here's one:

On a strange island monastery, there are some monks with brown eyes, and some with red. Monks with red eyes are obliged to commit suicide at midnight, because they are cursed. However, no monk can tell the colour of his own eyes, as the other monks are not allowed to indicate it to him, and there are no reflective surfaces on the island (and they are forbidden from approaching the surrounding water). For years, the monks live in peace. One day, however, a tourist arrives, and says simply "At least one of you has red eyes."

What happens?

[MuffinSticks]

The answer was better though. You should be thanking me for it, Doctor.

[Segovia]

What about the sun? It can go fast or slow depending on your relative speed or point of reference in space, people rely on it, and people make a career, literally, out of studying it.

It is plausible. But not the answer I was looking for. Anybody have another riddle?

[MuffinSticks]

Before the tourist, if there was only one monk with red eyes, the one with red eyes would not know if anyone on the island had red eyes since he couldnt see his own, and he would be the only one to know for sure that either one person (himself) had red eyes, or no one did. So after the tourist, the one would red eyes would then be able to deduce that it was him since no one else had them, and he would kill himself. If more than one monk had red eyes, the tourist's comment would be pointless, for every single monk on the island would know that at least one person had red eyes, but they would have no way of knowing if they had red eyes, so nobody would know to kill themself.

That's probably a trick question more or less, but I took a shot.

[nickspoon]

You're partially correct. There's more to it.

[Tom Flapwell]

The riddle specified that "some" have red eyes, so there must be more than one.

Now, if the tourist came when nobody had red eyes and he lied about it, they'd all commit suicide... unless they became aware of brown-eyed monks committing suicide and figured out that something was amiss.

[nickspoon]

If the tourist were lying, and none of them have red eyes, then the monks would indeed all commit suicide at midnight. The tourist is not lying, however.

(Assume that the monks do not find out about who has committed suicide until the next morning.)

[Segovia]

Felt like this thread kind of died after I left for a short period. Anyway I'm bringing it back.

Next riddle.

Two convicts are locked in a cell. There is an unbarred window high up in the cell. No matter if they stand on the bed or one on top of the other they can't reach the window to escape. They then decide to tunnel out. However, they give up with the tunneling because it will take too long. Finally one of the convicts figures out how to escape from the cell. What is his plan?

[Dr. Sticks]

use the dirt from the tunnel to build a ramp up to the window.

[Segovia]

You got it Dr. Sticks.

[Segovia]

With pointed fangs it sits in wait,
With piercing force its doles out fate,
Over bloodless victims proclaiming its might,
Eternally joining in a single bite.
What am I?

[LewisTheTank]

With pointed fangs it sits in wait,
With piercing force its doles out fate,
Over bloodless victims proclaiming its might,
Eternally joining in a single bite.
What am I?

Only two things come to mind:
Either a fork or a stapler...

[osprey]

Yeah, "eternally joining in one bite" would lead me to believe it's a stapler.

[Dr. Sticks]

staplers never work on the first try though

[Archaemic]

Buh? You're doing it wrong, then. I rarely have trouble with staplers.