# joke **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 26, 2015, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514 "2015-06-26T04:41:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**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:** [June 28, 2015, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/41 "2015-06-28T03:55:00Z")
9 letters long ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/42 "2015-06-28T04:21:42Z")
So why _is_ a raven like a writing desk anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/43 "2015-06-28T04:55:50Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > So why _is_ a raven like a writing desk anyway? The best answer that I’ve heard is, “Because Poe wrote on both.” ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/44 "2015-06-28T05:25:11Z")
Well, that’s no fun. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/45 "2015-06-28T17:14:10Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > 9 letters long Oh. I instantly forgot that provision. Cancel my “denominator” entry. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/46 "2015-06-28T18:01:43Z")
punchline ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/47 "2015-06-28T18:06:58Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > punchline Good one. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/48 "2015-06-28T19:14:19Z")
Nit picking premise of joke ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/49 "2015-06-28T19:53:41Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > No complex mathematics here. But e is not complex. It is irrational but still real, complex mathematics involves i, the square root of -1. ---
**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:** [June 29, 2015, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/50 "2015-06-29T01:06:16Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > Oh. I instantly forgot that provision. Cancel my “denominator” entry. Ah, see…This is why I hesitated to post the **harder** riddle. Nice job with "Camry,"though. Folks don’t usually get that one so fast. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/51 "2015-06-30T16:03:24Z")
Have I missed something here? Where’s the answer, dammit. Inquiring minds gots ta know. (I love these “think outside the box” riddles.) ---
**Author:** ![SailorHG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SailorHG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SailorHG)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2015, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/52 "2015-06-30T17:03:37Z")
I wrote a small Objective-C program to “stringify” all the numbers between zero and 1.2 million (using the NSNumberFormatterSpellOutStyle selector). And barring doing anything “cute” (like using “feet” or “dozen” or the like) there was no way to get a result with exactly nine characters and five vowels. There were a couple of close-calls: “seventeen” has nine characters and four vowels, and “one million” has ten characters and five vowels. However, the original problem did not include “y” as a vowel. If you add it, there were exactly two results that matched the all of the conditions. I don’t know how to do the spoiler trick, but it is what you get by solving: x^2 + 7371 = 172x. ---
**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:** [June 30, 2015, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/53 "2015-06-30T19:37:05Z")
Hint: The answer contains no L, M, P, or T . This riddle came to me a couple of weeks ago when I was at the dentist. I have always been nervous at the dentist office due to youth trauma too convoluted to explain here. In any case, In such situations I try to take my mind off off what is going on by trying to think up riddles and puzzles. This helps on nights with insomnia as well. I remember thinking…“hey that’s a neat little riddle”… so I am glad the opportunity came along to post it. My sister is a computer science and math professor at Appalachian State. I think I will e-mail it to her and see if she is stumped as well. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2015, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/54 "2015-07-01T02:01:19Z")
What is the number of a Saturday night traffic stop? ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2015, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/55 "2015-07-01T02:22:38Z")
> [@NadaHappyCamper](#): > > Is this the correct forum for riddles? It was funnier before you translated it to English. ---
**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:** [July 1, 2015, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/56 "2015-07-01T02:24:17Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > What is the number of a Saturday night traffic stop? 😃 Yes indeed. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2015, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/57 "2015-07-02T15:20:23Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > So why _is_ a raven like a writing desk anyway? They both have inky quills. ---
**Author:** ![Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ac8455/32.png) [@Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Your_Great_Darsh_Face)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2015, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/58 "2015-07-02T17:21:07Z")
They both slope with a flap. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2015, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/59 "2015-07-02T17:25:58Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > So why _is_ a raven like a writing desk anyway? Because they both have 14 k of g in a f p d. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2015, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514/60 "2015-07-02T17:32:03Z")
> [@August\_West](#): > > …inky quills. What do you get when you cross a Pacman character with a porcupine? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joke/723514.md?page=4)