HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: grue@cs.uq.oz.au (Pauli Dale)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: Puzzle 1
Date: 16 Sep 92 00:32:56 GMT
Reply-To: grue@cs.uq.oz.au

moon@haydn.llnl.gov (Steven Moon) writes:

>|> My program produces the following output:
>|> 	0123456789
>|> 	6210001000
>|> 	no solutions found

>	I found the solution for the third row

>	2061116111

>	with no solution in the fourth row.

>	I do not think that the solution given by  Xavier Nicollin is a proper
>	solution.  He gives the third row as 0004440444.  In the previous row
>	we did not specify six-fours. 

I think we're solving different problems here.  I had assumed that
repeated digits in the second row didn't have to have the same number
in the third.

Thus the solution:
	2061116111 would means 2x6, 0x2, (6+6)x1=12x1 and 6x0.

I.e. I summed the digits under the repeated digits.

I still stand by my initial statement for my version of the problem.
I do recognise that the other version exists and that it does have
solutions.





        						Pauli

Paul Dale                       | grue@cs.uq.oz.au
Department of Computer Science  | +61 7 365 2445
University of Queensland        |
Australia, 4072                 | Did you know that there are 41 two letter
                                |     words containing the letter 'a'?
--
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: chalcraft@uk.tele.nokia.fi (Adam Chalcraft)
Subject: Re: Another words game
Organization: cpd
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 07:45:32 GMT

In article <1992Sep8.203253.8750@vax.oxford.ac.uk> peake@vax.oxford.ac.uk writes:

>   The LastLestListLostLust game, and the idea is to find new names for it.

I have looked for short ones.
PatPetPitPotPut is the only 3-letter one I know using sensible words.
Using silly words (Chambers=Scrabble), MaMeMiMoMu and AnEnInOnUn are both okay.
The first can even be extended to MaMeMiMoMuMy.
--
  ____________________________________________________________________________
 /  _Name: Adam|Names are linguistic constructs expressed in some language._  \
|\_|/|Chalcraft|They correspond to objects in some universe of discourse. |\|_/|
|`   |         |The corresponence between names (in the language) and     |`   |
|`   |Opinions:|objects (in the universe of discourse) is the  relation of|`   |
|`   |     Mine|identifying. A name identifies the object to which it is  |`   |
|`   |_________|bound.__________________________ISO_7498-3_:_1989_(E)_5.1_|`   |
 \__/                                                                      \__/

Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: huh@wccf.mit.edu (GENE SIMON HUH)
Subject: Re: 20 question stories
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41    
Keywords: bears
Organization: MIT - Whitaker College
Date: Sat, 12 Sep 1992 22:59:00 GMT

In article <Rev_Bud_Bergen.0332@edtng.uwp.edu> Rev_Bud_Bergen@edtng.uwp.edu 
(Rev
Bud Bergen) writes:
> Or, a person goes ten miles south, ten miles east and ten miles north to
> end up where he started.  What color were the bears?
> 

Spoiler follows:
I thought there were no bears there.  Just Santa Claus.

Gene Huh
huh@wccf.mit.edu


Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: merlyn@digibd.com (Merlyn LeRoy)
Subject: Re: Multiple spellings
Organization: DigiBoard Incorporated, Eden Prairie, MN
Date: Fri, 11 Sep 1992 17:06:05 GMT

In article <79322@ut-emx.uucp>, steppe@ccwf (Top Changwatchai) writes:
>First name:  Muammer, Moammar, Muammar
>Last name:  Qaddhafi, Qaddafi, Gaddafi, Kaddafi, Khadafy, Qadhafi, Qadaffi,
>  Gadaffi, Qathafi, Gadaafi, and, in Adams' words,

And, of course, from Saturday Night Live: Khadaffy Duck

---
Merlyn LeRoy
From: Heather_Premeau@edtng.uwp.edu (Heather Premeau)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: Audible Puzzles or Nonsense Questions
Distribution: world
Date: 12 Sep 92 02:21:51 CST
Organization: Electric Dreams: The Next Generation BBS


 II> Another one which is surprisingly effective:

 II> Which is correct: "Eight and eight IS fifteen" or "Eight and
 II> eight ARE fifteen"?
 II> -- 
 II> Mark Isaak           "Every generation thinks it has the answers, and
 II> every
 II> isaak@aurora.com      generation is humbled by nature." - Philip
 II> Lubin


     Would you believe NEITHER!!!


-- Via DLG Pro v0.992

Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: guckes@math.fu-berlin.de (Sven Guckes)
Subject: Re: redundancy
Originator: guckes@medusa
Organization: Free University of Berlin, Germany
Distribution: na
Date: Sat, 5 Sep 1992 15:34:09 GMT

rmurphy@usc.edu (Bob Murphy) writes:

>One can sometimes overhear people use the following phrases:
>
>    ATM machine, HIV virus, PIN number, and LCD display.
>
>These are all redundant.  For example, ATM stands for Automatic
>Teller Machine so why say the word "machine" after ATM?  The others
>are similar.  Can anyone think of other examples of this type of redundancy?

FAQ question.

Would somebody please post that list of redundancies, please ?
Would somebody please post that list of redundancies, please ?
From: jesse@uts.amdahl.com (Jesse Mundis)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: The ULTIMATE problem!!! (spoiler?)
Date: 14 Sep 92 22:47:43 GMT
Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Sunnyvale CA

Well, I had the right methodology.. I just left out a factor of 10.

Oops.

No need to tell me I missed it.

Jesse "So close, and yet so far" Mundis

-- 
    Jesse Mundis     |      Amdahl Corporation       | Freedom is just chaos
jesse@uts.amdahl.com | 1250 East Arques Ave  M/S 316 | with better lighting.
   (408) 746-4796    |   Sunnyvale,  CA 94088-3470   |    -Alan Dean Foster 

#include <Disclaimer.standard>
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: alix@iastate.edu (Leigh Ann)
Subject: Re: 20 question stories
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames IA
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1992 01:19:38 GMT

In <1992Sep7.053657.24367@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz> rossw@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz (Ross Williamson) writes:

>	I'm looking for a collection of logic puzzles.
>What they are is a story which you can tell people and then they ask
>you questions about the problem trying to solve the question you 
>pose them.  Similar to 20 questions but these can last for days.

These are two I heard a long time ago...

A man kisses his wife good-bye and goes to work one morning.  After traveling
for a while, he turns around, returns home, and shoots his wife.  Why?

A man walks into a restaurant in Terra Del Fuego, and orders penguin soup.
It's an odd request, but the chef makes it for him.  The man takes one bite,
pulls out a gun, and committs suicide.  Why?

I'm not sure if either of these can be solved in twenty questions.  If anyone
wants the rest of the story, e-mail me at: alix@iastate.edu

-Leigh Ann
alix@iastate.edu
From: nicollin@imag.fr (Xavier Nicollin)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: Puzzle 1
Date: 15 Sep 92 12:22:02 GMT
Organization: IMAG Institute, University of Grenoble, France

In article <1992Sep14.133741.34561@watson.ibm.com> cliff@watson.ibm.com (cliff) writes:
  >> 
  >>If you respond to this puzzle, if possible please include your name,
  >>address, affiliation, e-mail address.  

Name: Xavier NICOLLIN
Address: LGI-IMAG
         BP 53X
	 38041 Grenoble cedex, FRANCE
Affiliation: IMAG, Univeriity of Grenoble
e-mail: nicollin@imag.fr

  >>
  >> ...  In the 10 boxes below,
  >>write a 10-digit number.  The digit in the first box indicates the total
  >>number of zeros in the entire number.  The box marked "1" indicates the
  >>total number of 1's in the number.  The box marked "2" indicates the
  >>total number of 2's in the number, and so on.  For example, the "3" in
  >>the box labeled "0" would indicate that there must be exactly three 0's
  >>in the 10-digit number.
  >>
  >>1. Is there a solution to this problem?

Yes, see below.


-------------------------------
| 0| 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| 8| 9|
| 6| 2| 1| 0| 0| 0| 1| 0| 0| 0|
-------------------------------

  >>Are there many solutions to this problem?

I don't know. However, I guess the answer is no.

  >>
  >>2. A more advanced an interesting problem is to continue to
  >>generate a sequence in a recursive fashion such that each row becomes
  >>the sequence for the previous.
  >>  ...
  >>Row 2 is now the starting point, and your next job is to form row 3, row 4,
  >>etc. using the same rules.
  >>

This is much easier, since some digits don't appear in a row:

Row 1: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9   S(1)
Row 2: 6 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0   S(2)
Row 3: 0 0 0 4 4 4 0 4 4 4   S(3)
Row 4: 6 6 6 0 0 0 6 0 0 0   S(4)
Row 5: 0 0 0 4 4 4 0 4 4 4   S(5) = S(3)
...

  >>
  >>Contest: I am looking for the longest sequence of numbers users can come
  >>up with using these rules.  Can you find a Row 2 or Row 3?
  >>Is it even possible to generate a "row 2" or "row 3"?
  >>

See above. The sequence is infinite..!

-- 

{      Xavier NICOLLIN                  |     office: D321                 }
{      L.G.I. Imag-Campus, B.P. 53X     |     phone: (33) 76-51-48-74      }
{      38041 Grenoble cedex  FRANCE     |     email: nicollin@imag.fr      }


-- 

{      Xavier NICOLLIN                  |     office: D321                 }
{      L.G.I. Imag-Campus, B.P. 53X     |     phone: (33) 76-51-48-74      }
{      38041 Grenoble cedex  FRANCE     |     email: nicollin@imag.fr      }
From: peake@vax.oxford.ac.uk
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Another words game
Date: 8 Sep 92 19:32:53 GMT
Organization: Oxford University VAX 6620

I came across this puzzle a few years ago.  We called it the 
LastLestListLostLust game, and the idea was to find new names for it.
The best answer we found had seven-letter words.  (Adding -ing etc. to
words doesn't count.)
m.p.
From: jmkaraka@eos.ncsu.edu (JOHN MARTIN KARAKASH)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: redundancy
Date: 9 Sep 92 22:54:57 GMT
Reply-To: jmkaraka@eos.ncsu.edu (JOHN MARTIN KARAKASH)
Distribution: na
Organization: North Carolina State University, Project Eos
Originator: jmkaraka@c00088-100lez.eos.ncsu.edu


|> 
|> One can sometimes overhear people use the following phrases:
|> 
|>     ATM machine, HIV virus, PIN number, and LCD display.
|> 
|> These are all redundant.  For example, ATM stands for Automatic
|> Teller Machine so why say the word "machine" after ATM?  The others
|> are similar.  Can anyone think of other examples of this type of
|> redundancy?
|> 
|>                              Bob Murphy (rmurphy@aludra.usc.edu)
|> 
	Not quite in the same vein, but one of my father's pet peeve's is
'Pre-recorded'.

-john-
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: cfarmer@ncsa.uiuc.edu (Chuck Farmer)
Subject: Re: Please repost logic puzzles
Followup-To: rec.puzzles
Organization: NCSA
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 15:10:21 GMT

I got them. Thank you.


Thanks
Chuck
cfarmer@ncsa.uiuc.edu


Only a fool is sure - Moe Howard
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles,sci.math
From: rcrawfor@nyx.cs.du.edu (Ron Crawford)
Subject: My FOURth building block
Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix @ U. of Denver Math/CS dept.
Date: Fri, 11 Sep 92 20:03:10 GMT


 
 
    Supposedly, all the whole numbers up to 119 have been "built" using
four 4's. Here are some examples:
 
0 = 4 + 4 - 4 - 4
1 = 44/44
2 = 4/4 + 4/4
13 = ((4^2)-4)+(4/4)
17 = (4(4^2)+4)/4
 
As you can see, any operation is legal(square, cube, nth root, addition,
subtraction, etc...).
 
Why the stoppage on 119? Is there some kind of proof available? Or a 
formula for the numbers that can be built?
 
Just curious. I want to put this old book of puzzles away for good. And
I can't get myself to do that unless I figure this last one out.
 
Thanx.  :)
 
rcrawfor@nyx.cs.du.edu

s
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: rstimets@silver.ucs.indiana.edu (robert and stimets)
Subject: Re: redundancy
Organization: Indiana University
Distribution: na
Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1992 22:25:49 GMT

In article <1992Sep7.205519.18536@news.unige.ch> borbor@divsun.unige.ch (BORIS Borcic) writes:
>In article <laftbjINNau3@aludra.usc.edu>, rmurphy@usc.edu (Bob Murphy) writes:
>> One can sometimes overhear people use the following phrases:
>> 
>>     ATM machine, HIV virus, PIN number, and LCD display.
>> 
>> These are all redundant.  For example, ATM stands for Automatic
>> Teller Machine so why say the word "machine" after ATM?  The others
>> are similar.  Can anyone think of other examples of this type of
>> redundancy?
>> 
>>                              Bob Murphy (rmurphy@aludra.usc.edu)
>
>
>GNU's Not Unix ?

S.A.M. missile
B.A.S.I.C. code

RStimets
From: gjm11@cus.cam.ac.uk (G.J. McCaughan)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: redundancy
Date: 16 Sep 92 00:22:22 GMT
Organization: U of Cambridge, England

In article <1992Sep15.145808.6931@discus.technion.ac.il>, nyh@gauss.technion.ac.il (Nadav Har'El) writes:

> what about LASER radiation (LASER=light amplification by stimulated emision
>                                    of radiation)

Nope. Think about it; the word "radiation" plays two *different* roles there.

-- 
Gareth McCaughan     Dept. of Pure Mathematics & Mathematical Statistics,
gjm11@cus.cam.ac.uk  Cambridge University, England.    [Research student]
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: tolman%asylum.cs.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Kenneth Tolman)
Subject: Re: 20 question stories
Date: 7 Sep 92 15:47:17 MDT
Keywords: gestalt,assumptions
Organization: University of Utah, CompSci Dept


>1. John is sitting near Martha, who lies dead on the floor in a puddle of
>water surrounded by broken glass.  How did Martha die?

John shot her.  Then he took a fish tank, and broke it on the floor, and
then poured gallons of water on top of her.  When the police came, he had
an excuse "I thought she was a god damned fish, a huge monster fish".  This
led to a successful insanity plea.

>2. A man lives on the 15th floor.  Every morning he rides the elevator to
>the ground floor and goes to work.  Every evening he takes the elevator to
>the 12th floor and walks up the stairs to the 15th floor.  Why?

His lover is on the 12th floor, and right after a little action, he has
lots of energy to bound up the stairs with.  His lover happens to be a midget,
which is why she chose to live on the 12th floor rather than the 15th,
because she was not so silly as to choose a floor she could not reach the
button for without help!
From: steppe@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Top Changwatchai)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: Visual Puzzle
Date: 6 Sep 92 20:43:00 GMT

In article <1992Sep3.202330.1@acad3.alaska.edu> ftbtl@acad3.alaska.edu (Brian T. Lamb (University of Alaska Fairbanks)) writes:
<Greetings (My first Post to this group):
<
<There are two puzzles here for you enjoyment...enjoy!
<
<1.	Given this pattern:
<
<	a   ef hi klmn     t vwxy
<	--------------------------
<	 bcd  g  j    opqrs u
<
<
<On which side does the z belong, and why?

"Z" belongs on the top side.  Capitalize the letters; those with no curves
belong on top, with curves belong on bottom.

<
<2.	What are the next five letters in the following pattern:
<
<	o-t-t-f-f-s-s-e-n-t-
<

I believe this one is pretty common.  An almost-as-common variation is this:
  f-s-t-f-f-s-s-
<	
<Answers will be posted next week.  My apologies if this is rehash.
<
<They call me Lambchops...	| How are you today? . . . What's that you say?
<   and I don't know why!	| Why I'm finer than a frog hair split four ways
<ftbtl@acad3.uafcs.alaska.edu	| on a frosty Fairbanks morning. . . 
<I Dunno, that's how God made me.|     --da da da da deep in the heart of Alaska.

Top
-- 
steppe@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu
"I'm gonna live forever or die trying."
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: ansok@stsci.edu (Gary Ansok)
Subject: Re: oxymorons
Reply-To: ansok@stsci.edu (Gary Ansok)
Organization: TRW, c/o Space Telescope Science Inst., Baltimore, MD
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1992 12:38:43 GMT

In article <1992Sep7.160053.15753@EE.Surrey.Ac.UK> M.Willis@ee.surrey.ac.uk (Mike Willis) writes:
>Lifetime Garuntee (Whose, yours or the products?)

Somewhere (I think it was in _Consumer Reports_), I saw a reprinting
of an ad featuring a

     5 Year Limited Lifetime Guarantee

Their comment was that if the product doesn't break within five years,
the company will come out and break it for you.

Gary
-- 
Gary Ansok           ansok@stsci.edu
A second Flood, a simple famine, plagues of locusts everywhere,
Or a cataclysmic earthquake I'd accept with some despair.
But no...You sent us Congress.  Good God, Sir, was that fair?
From: sb102760@ntuvax.ntu.ac.sg
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: 20 question stories
Date: 8 Sep 92 00:50:36 GMT
Organization: Nanyang Technological University - Singapore

In article <1992Sep7.053657.24367@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz>, rossw@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz (Ross Williamson) writes:
> 	I'm looking for a collection of logic puzzles.
> What they are is a story which you can tell people and then they ask
> you questions about the problem trying to solve the question you 
> pose them.  Similar to 20 questions but these can last for days ie.
> 
> 	' There is a man in a desert he is hung by his neck from a
> gallows.  His feet are 5 feet off the ground there is no way he could
> have got to this position by jumping or climbing.  All you notice is
> that there is a puddle of water at his feet.
> 	Question : How did he die ??  '
> 
> 	And then people ask questions like 
> 	'Did he climb the gallows to the noose?'
> 	To which the answer is 
> 	'no'
> 
> 	Is there a list of these around they are alway a good laugh and
> a lot of fun to do.
> 	
> 	Does someone want to try and solve this one ??
> 
> Please help me :)
> 
> Ross
> +-----------------------------------------+--------------------+
> | Name   : Ross Williamson                |Auckland University | 
> | E-Mail : rossw@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz        |    New Zealand     |
> | Of course these opinions are my own and thank !! for that    |
> +--------------------------------------------------------------+
> "Oh Zaphod he's in his cabin signing photos of himself, 'To 
> myself with frank admiration" Arthur Dent - From the Hitchhikers
> Guide To The Galaxy.
>
From: isc10068@nusunix3.nus.sg (CHEW LIP PING)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: anyone has matrix puzzles?
Date: 10 Sep 92 09:42:28 GMT
Organization: National University of Singapore

Thanks
Ping

isc10068@nusunix.nus.sg
isc10068@nusvm.bitnet
From: jesse@uts.amdahl.com (Jesse Mundis)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: The ULTIMATE problem!!! (PARTIAL SPOILER!)
Date: 14 Sep 92 20:23:33 GMT
Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Sunnyvale CA

onar@hsr.no (Onar Aam) writes:

>I challenge you lot out there to solve this problem. If you crack this nut, you
>qualify for Mensa-membership. I posted this problem to rec.org.mensa as well, and
>no-one dared to answer it. Do YOU dare????

I dare.

>THE PROBLEM:

>A very bright and sunny Day
>The Priest didst to the Verger say:
>"Last Monday met I strangers three
>None of which were known to Thee.
>I ask'd Them of Their Age combin'd
>which amounted twice to Thine!
>A Riddle now will I give Thee:
>Tell Me what Their Ages be!"

>So the Verger ask'd the Priest:
>"Give to Me a Clue at least!"
>"Keep Thy Mind and Ears awake,
>And see what Thou of this can make.
>Their Ages multiplied make plenty,
>Fifty and Ten Dozens Twenty."

>The Verger had a sleepless Night
>To try to get Their Ages right.
>"I almost found the Answer right.
>Please shed on it a little Light."
>"A little Clue I give to Thee,
>I'm older than all Strangers three."
>After but a little While
>The Verger answered with a Smile:
>"Inside my Head has rung a Bell.
>Now I know the answer well!"


>Now, the question is:

>How old is the PRIEST??
>               ======

[assurances that the problem can be solved deleted for space]

O.k.  the first step is basically one of the FAQ problems with different
numbers.
X+Y+Z=2*Verger
X*Y*Z=240

240 factors into 2^4, 3, and 5
Since the sum of X,Y, and Z is 2 times a whole number, the sum must be even,
so X,Y, and Z must either be all even, or 2 of them must be odd.

This leaves the strangers ages a choice of:

3, 5 16
4, 6, 10
2, 12 10
2, 6, 20

It must be either the first or the third choice, otherwise the verger, who
we assume is as smart as we are, and knows his own age, would have figured
it out without the last clue.  This implies ther verger is 12.  We also
assume that the verger knows the age of the priest, so that the last clue
provides the information he needs to solve the puzzle.  If P (the age of
the priest) is >16, no information is gained, and both answers are still 
possible, so we have bounded P<=16.  Whatever the value of P in this range,
the strangers were 2, 12, and 10, and the verger was 12.

Unfortunately, I can only bound P such that 12<P<=16 which still gives 4
possible values for P.

Unless there is some law or custom which states a minimum age for a priest,
I can't get the answer any closer than 13-16.  If there is such a custom
or law, the answer must be 16.  (But I'd argue that the problem didn't contain
all the needed information)

Any other ideas on how this could be narrowed down further?
-- 
    Jesse Mundis     |      Amdahl Corporation       | Freedom is just chaos
jesse@uts.amdahl.com | 1250 East Arques Ave  M/S 316 | with better lighting.
   (408) 746-4796    |   Sunnyvale,  CA 94088-3470   |    -Alan Dean Foster 

#include <Disclaimer.standard>
From: nicollin@imag.fr (Xavier Nicollin)
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
Subject: Re: The ULTIMATE problem!!! *** SPOILER. ***
Date: 15 Sep 92 12:50:47 GMT
Organization: IMAG Institute, University of Grenoble, France

In article <1992Sep14.145505.3801@hsr.no> onar@hsr.no (Onar Aam) writes:
  >>
  >>... all ages are WHOLE-numbered. 
  >>
  >>THE PROBLEM:
  >>
  >>A very bright and sunny Day
  >>The Priest didst to the Verger say:    
  >>"Last Monday met I strangers three
  >>None of which were known to Thee.

Age of Priest: P, age of Verger: V.
Ages of strangers: X \leq Y \leq Z.

  >>I ask'd Them of Their Age combin'd     
  >>which amounted twice to Thine!         

X + Y + Z = 2 * V (I assume that ``combined'' means ``added'')

  >>A Riddle now will I give Thee:         
  >>Tell Me what Their Ages be!"
  >>
  >>So the Verger ask'd the Priest:
  >>"Give to Me a Clue at least!"
  >>"Keep Thy Mind and Ears awake,
  >>And see what Thou of this can make.
  >>Their Ages multiplied make plenty,
  >>Fifty and Ten Dozens Twenty."          
  
X * Y * Z = 50 + 10 * 12 * 20 = 2450

Possibilities :
   X    Y    Z    V
   2    5  245  126
   2    7  175   92
   2   25   49   38
   2   35   35   36
   5    5   98   54
   5    7   70   41
   5   10   49   32 <--
   5   14   35   27
   7    7   50   32 <--
   7   10   35   26
   7   14   25   23

  >>
  >>The Verger had a sleepless Night
  >>To try to get Their Ages right.
  >>"I almost found the Answer right.

Since he hasn't found yet, the solution is one of the two rows having the 
same value for V. Hence, V is 32, and (X,Y,Z)=(5,10,49) or (X,Y,Z)=(7,7,50).

  >>Please shed on it a little Light."
  >>"A little Clue I give to Thee,
  >>I'm older than all Strangers three."

I assume ``older'' means P > Z, not P \geq Z.

  >>After but a little While
  >>The Verger answered with a Smile:
  >>"Inside my Head has rung a Bell.
  >>Now I know the answer well!"
  >>
  >>
  >>Now, the question is:
  >>
  >>How old is the PRIEST??
  >>               ======
  >>

The only value of P which allows to conclude between (5,10,49) and (7,7,50)
is P = 50. The age of the Priest is 50, the verger is 32, which we knew
already, and the strangers are 5, 10, and 49 year old.

-- 

{      Xavier NICOLLIN                  |     office: D321                 }
{      L.G.I. Imag-Campus, B.P. 53X     |     phone: (33) 76-51-48-74      }
{      38041 Grenoble cedex  FRANCE     |     email: nicollin@imag.fr      }
Newsgroups: rec.puzzles
From: daugher@cs.tamu.edu(Walter C. Daugherity)
Subject: Re: 20 question stories
Keywords: gestalt,assumptions
Reply-To: daugher@cs.tamu.edu
Organization: Texas A&M University, College Station
Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1992 21:18:14 GMT

1. John is sitting near Martha, who lies dead on the floor in a puddle of
water surrounded by broken glass.  How did Martha die?

2. A man lives on the 15th floor.  Every morning he rides the elevator to
the ground floor and goes to work.  Every evening he takes the elevator to
the 12th floor and walks up the stairs to the 15th floor.  Why?

--
Walter C. Daugherity			Internet, NeXTmail: daugher@cs.tamu.edu
Texas A & M University			uucp: uunet!cs.tamu.edu!daugher
College Station, TX 77843-3112		BITNET: DAUGHER@TAMVENUS
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Newsgroups: rec.puzzles