Kogorous Riddle Thread and eworms Deduction Thread

[Borealis]

*posts so Mr. Nemo doesn't have to doublepost*

[no one]

*Thanks Borealis but finds out no riddle has been posted yet, out of laziness simply posts a "copied" riddle*


The Two Guards, Part Two: Stranger Than Truth (from Discover magazine, January, 1991)
You have undoubtedly heard of those mysterious islands where half the inhabitants always tell the truth and the other half always lie. Nobody seems to have actually visited one of these islands, but everyone knows of someone who has, someone who found himself at the fork in a road with a strange islander (who could be either a truth teller or a liar) and who was able to ask only one question to find the right path.
That's simple. So is the case where the islanders don't speak English and you have to interpret their response. It's even possible to find the right road if half of them are zombies or psycho killers and you are armed with one silly question.
I once found myself on an island that made those places look like "Romper Room." Picture, if you will, the Isle of Row, a one-acre forsaken swatch of desert in the middle of the Sea of Troubles. Despite its diminutive size, Row has no less than four kinds of people, all outwardly indistinguishable from one another. There are the members of the First Family, who always tell the truth, and the Pretenders, who never do. There are the Eccentrics, who may or may not tell the truth, depending on whim. Finally there are the Wimps, who are incapable of speaking unless they have heard one of the other kinds of people speak, and then they obsequiously chime in.
One day, as luck would have it, I found myself at the only crossroads on the island, facing four possible routes. Three Rowians stood by, milling about, and I had only two questions to ask in order to reach, as directly as possible, the fabled 100-foot Tower of Schmooze, the island's premier, albeit only, tourist attraction. What did I do?

[Jefufuh]

Spoiler:

You followed a sign that pointed to the tower

[Rein]

Spoiler:

  It's only one acre and the tower's a hundred feet high, I'm sure if you looked up you'd be able to find your way?

[no one]

Jefufuh: not exactly
Rein : Correct . Your turn 

[Rein]

Hmm... Okay,

A 24 year-old man is found murdered in his study, and the police have narrowed it down to four people. 22 year-old Olivia Well - his girlfriend; 25 year-old Sam Cart - his best friend; 67 year-old Jan Bell - his mother and 30 year-old Mao Light - his secretary.
All his pens have been taken from his desk, his drawers are all open and lying in front of him is a calender from a few years ago, open at May. Scribbled in the victim's own blood are the numbers: 9 4/8 3/5
The police conclude that it was written by the victim and therefore  must be a dying message.
Who killed the man?

Don't know how easy or hard this is. Feel free to ask for hints or extra information or whatever.

[aly_angelflight]

What year is the calendar open to, anyhow? ^^;

[sstimson]

Sure who did it. but the code is the current problem. Got an idea on that but it seem too weird.

feeling it is another keyboard code.

[miyano_shiho]

Spoiler:

The one who killed him was his best friend, Sam Cart.
The dying message says "SAM", taken from the first letters of the months.
*9=S(Sept), 4/8=A(April/August), 3/5=M(March/May)

[Rein]

What year:

Spoiler:

2007

And Miyano: Correct 

Your turn?

[miyano_shiho]

I don't have a riddle at the moment. I'll look for a good one... might take me some time. If anyone else wants to post, it's fine.

Found one (modified it a little ):

I have a basket containing 25 Conan plushies and 50 Kaito plushies. I also have an unlimited supply of Kaito plushies. Then, I withdraw two random plushies and:

If both are Kaito plushies, I put one back and throw the other away.
If both are Conan plushies, I throw both away and replace them with a Kaito plushie.
If I get one each, I throw the Kaito plushie and put the Conan plushie back.

Eventually, I am left with only one plushie since in every draw I throw a plushie away. Which one is it? Explain why.

[sstimson]

I must ask a question, but it is not likely to get answered.

If " 9 4/8 3/5" was a dying message why repeat the 4/8 and 3/5" why not just a 4 and a 3" so it can only point to one, why the extra blood and time to make the extra characters?

Your likely to answer was not thinking clearly and thus did more then needed.

[miyano_shiho]

^
I guess that was just to make the riddle more complicated.

[aly_angelflight]

Well, that's rather easy...

Spoiler: Solution to that...

Because you can only get rid of a Conan plushie by pairing it with another, in which case both are thrown, and there is no way to add more Conan plushies, only when 2 is a factor of the initial number of Conan plushies is it possible for all of the Conan plushies to be thrown out.

Two, however, is not a factor of 25. Thus, you will eventually have 1 Conan plushie left in the basket, and all draws after that will result in you throwing away a Kaito plushie. Eventually, you'll run out of Kaito plushies, and that Conan plushie will be the only one left.

[miyano_shiho]

Exactly. Your turn.