# 53 bicycles: A lateral thinking puzzle **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [July 9, 2017, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868 "2017-07-09T19:51:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 169
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2018, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3362 "2018-09-14T02:31:11Z")
Is a natural disaster involved in any way? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2018, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3363 "2018-09-14T02:32:59Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Is a natural disaster involved in any way? **No** ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2018, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3364 "2018-09-14T03:00:27Z")
Was the land located north of the Mason-Dixon Line? Was the land located South of the Mason-Dixon Line? Did the small company provide goods to consumers? Did the small company provide services to consumers? Did the small company provide goods to businesses? Did the small company provide services to businesses? Re: Is the location relevant - I wanted to avoid asking dozens of location questions if it doesn’t provide useful information. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2018, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3365 "2018-09-14T03:09:01Z")
**reply to j666** Was the land located north of the Mason-Dixon Line? **Yes** Was the land located South of the Mason-Dixon Line? **No** Did the small company provide goods to consumers? **Yes** Did the small company provide services to consumers? **No** Did the small company provide goods to businesses? **No** Did the small company provide services to businesses? **No** Re: Is the location relevant - I wanted to avoid asking dozens of location questions if it doesn’t provide useful information. **In the sense I think you mean, then no the location is not relevent. It could have happened anywhere.** ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2018, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3366 "2018-09-14T03:16:51Z")
Was the land in New York? Was the small business a stationiers? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2018, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3367 "2018-09-14T03:20:01Z")
**reply to j666** : Was the land in New York? **Yes** Was the small business a stationiers? **No** ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3368 "2018-09-15T00:15:04Z")
Would figuring out what kind of business the small business was help? Was the lie(which was about transportation) have to do with cars in any way? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3369 "2018-09-15T00:16:44Z")
Did the lie have to do with animal-powered transportation? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3370 "2018-09-15T00:42:54Z")
Was the service the smallest business provided: Financial service? Measuring anything? Auditing anything? Bookkeeping? Sales? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3371 "2018-09-15T04:21:42Z")
**reply to Mahaloth** Would figuring out what kind of business the small business was help? **No. Well, maybe. It wouldn’t necessarily point in the right direction, but might help from veering off in the wrong direction.** Was the lie(which was about transportation) have to do with cars in any way? \*\*Yes. But remember the previous question only asked if the lie “involved” transportation, not that it was “about” transportation. Be careful with assumptions. \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3372 "2018-09-15T04:23:05Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Did the lie have to do with animal-powered transportation? **No** ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3373 "2018-09-15T04:28:51Z")
**reply to Mahaloth** : Was the service the smallest business provided: Financial service? **No** Measuring anything? **No** Auditing anything? **No** Bookkeeping? **No** Sales? **Yes** * * * I can’t decide if knowing the nature of the small business will help or not. So let’s find out! **It was a small “Mom and Pop” kind of General Store.** ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3374 "2018-09-15T13:16:27Z")
Did the small business find out the truth… …in the course of normal business operations (for instance, buying wares from their suppliers)? …in the course of unusual business operations (for instance, construction to increase the size of their store)? …in the course of activities taken during business, but not directly business-related (for instance, gossip from customers)? …in a context unrelated to their business? And I’m curious about the big oil company backing the guys telling the lie, when the lie didn’t profit the big oil company. But I can’t think of any good yes-or-no questions for that. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3375 "2018-09-15T13:31:32Z")
The lie was **about** land and **involved** transportation - is that correct? Did the lie involve electricity? Was the lie told about a specific parcel of land? (as opposed to, say, the Adirondack mountains) Was the small business located on the land about which the lie was told? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3376 "2018-09-15T13:56:59Z")
**reply to Chronos** : Did the small business find out the truth… …in the course of normal business operations (for instance, buying wares from their suppliers)? **No** …in the course of unusual business operations (for instance, construction to increase the size of their store)? **No** …in the course of activities taken during business, but not directly business-related (for instance, gossip from customers)? **No** …in a context unrelated to their business? **No** ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3377 "2018-09-15T14:01:48Z")
**reply to j666** : The lie was **about** land and **involved** transportation - is that correct? **Yes** Did the lie involve electricity? **No** Was the lie told about a specific parcel of land? (as opposed to, say, the Adirondack mountains) **Yes** Was the small business located on the land about which the lie was told? **Yes** ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3378 "2018-09-15T14:59:56Z")
Did the lie involve water in any way? Did the lie involve mortgages in any way? Was the lie associated in any way with a New Deal program? ETA: Is that the incident occurred in the 1930s critical to solving the puzzle? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3379 "2018-09-15T15:12:26Z")
**replybto j666** : Did the lie involve water in any way? **No** Did the lie involve mortgages in any way? **No** Was the lie associated in any way with a New Deal program? **No** ETA: Is that the incident occurred in the 1930s critical to solving the puzzle? \*\*No, not the specific decade. But knowing that it happened in that part of the 20th century is helpful in understanding how what happened could have happened. \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3380 "2018-09-15T15:37:42Z")
Did this involve an archeological discovery in any way? Did the small business find something? Did the small business discover something about the land? Didi the small business accidentally prove the oil company right? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2018, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/3381 "2018-09-15T15:55:40Z")
**reply to Mahaloth** Did this involve an archeological discovery in any way? **No** Did the small business find something? **No** Did the small business discover something about the land? **No** Did the small business accidentally prove the oil company right? **Yes and No. The oil company report intentionally lied, remember. But the involvement of the small company was accidental.** [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868.md?page=168) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868.md?page=170)