Cade Metz — Wired.com

Intelligence Test for College Freshman

This is an actual test a professor gave to an engineering class. The goal of this test is not to make someone feel less smart, rather to show that that each question, if looked carefully and/or from a different angle, can provide a simple clear solution. I recently gave this test to my design and development team to see if they focus on details or getting the job done. Result was fairly what I expected.

1. Do they have a 4th of July in England?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) Yes
   (c) No
2. How many birthdays does the average man have?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 1
   (c) 37
   (d) 52
   (e) 73
3. Some months have 31 days in them, how many have 28?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 1
   (c) 2
   (d) 3
   (e) 6
   (f ) 9
   (g) 12
4. How many outs are there in a inning (baseball)?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 2
   (c) 3
   (d) 6
   (e) 8
5. Is it legal for a man in California to marry his widow’s sister?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) Yes
   (c) No
6. Divide 30 by ½ and add 10. What is the answer?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 10
   (c) 25
   (d) 50
   (e) 70
   (f) 90
7. If there are 3 apples and you take away 2, how many do you have? (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 1
   (c) 2
   (d) 3
8. A doctor gives you three pills telling you to take one every half hour. How many minutes would the pills last?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 20
   (c) 40
   (d) 60
   (e) 90
9. A farmer has 17 sheep, and all but 9 die. How many are left?
   (a) I Don’t Know
   (b) 1
   (c) 3
   (d) 5
   (e) 7
   (f) 9
10. How many animals of each sex did Moses take on the ark?
    (a) I Don’t Know
    (b) 3
    (c) 2
    (d) 1
    (e) 0
11. How many two cent stamps are there in a dozen?
    (a) I Don’t Know
    (b) 3
    (c) 6
    (d) 9
    (e) 12
    (f) 24

Answers

(b) Yes >> There is July 4th in all calendars.

(b) 1 >> A man can only have one birthdays a year. No man (practically speaking) was ever born more than once.

(g) 12 >> Every month of the calendar has the date 28.

(d) 6 >> There are 6 outs, 3 for each team.

(b) Yes >> The question states the widow’s sister. A woman can only be a widow if her husband passes away. How can a dead man marry?

(e) 70 >> 30 divided by ½ can also be written as 30 x 2. 30 x 2 = 60 + 10 = 70.

(c) 2 >> There were total of three apples and you took away two. Therefore you have two, because you only took two.

(d) 60 >> The question states that you have three pills, you take one. Thirty minutes later you take another one. Thats two gone. Another thirty minutes you take the third one. Therefore, it too you 60 minutes total to finish all pills. It asks for how long the pill lasts. The question does not specify if it lasts in your stomach. Therefore, it is referring to the outside.

(f) 9 >> The question states all but 9 sheep die. Thus, there are only 9 sheep alive.

(f) 0 >> Moses never built an arc for the animals, Noah did (Noah’s Arc).

(f) 12 >> There are 12 items in a dozen. Thus, there are 12 stamps in a dozen.

Originally published at sazzad.me.